Libyan Al Qaeda Militant Wanted by FBI for 1998 Embassy Bombings Allegedly Abducted in Tripoli (UPDATE: CNN Reports U.S. Special Forces Captured Him)

Story by the Associated Press; curated by Dave Urbanski

UPDATE: CNN reports that U.S. Special Forces were behind capturing al-Libi and that the operation was conducted with the knowledge of the Libyan government, according to a U.S. official.

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — Relatives of a Libyan Al Qaeda leader, wanted for his role in the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in East Africa, says the 49-year-old has been kidnapped in Tripoli.

Nazih Abdul-Hamed al-Ruqai, known by his alias Anas al-Libi, is believed to have returned to Libya during the 2011 civil war that led to the ouster and killing of dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

(Credit: FBI via YouTube)

His brother, Nabih, said al-Libi was parking outside his house early Saturday after dawn prayers, when three vehicles encircled him, smashed the car's window and seized his gun before grabbing him and fleeing.

The brother said el-Libi's wife saw the kidnapping from her window and described the abductors as foreign-looking armed "commandos."

Al-Libi is on the FBI's most-wanted list with a $ 5 million bounty on his head.

--

[related]