The two Swiss men held in Libya - from whom there has been no word since last month - are both well, a Libyan minister has told the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper.
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Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaim was quoted as saying that the men were “both fine given the circumstances, even although they would rather be in another place”.
In a short telephone interview, which was published on Sunday, Kaim rejected allegations that the two had been kidnapped. He said that Libya had simply taken precautionary measures.
He added that men were not being held in a prison but in a house, in a place where “no one can harm them”.
The comments come just days after a 60-day deadline for normalising relations between Switzerland and Libya ran out with no word on the fate of the two Swiss businessmen. Relations have taken a nosedive following the arrest of one of Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi’s sons in Geneva last year.
The men have been detained in Libya for more than a year. On September 18 they went for a medical examination and were then whisked off to an undisclosed location.
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Cabinet “disappointed” by Libya’s conduct
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On Wednesday a 60-day deadline for normalising relations ran out with no word on the fate of two Swiss businessmen detained in Libya for over a year. At a news conference on Thursday, cabinet members declined to say what measures would be taken towards Libya. “Switzerland sticks to its agreements and promises to all states,…
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Experts say Switzerland needs to carefully analyse its next steps in the Libya dispute, which arose after Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi’s son was arrested in Geneva last year. A Swiss delegation, led by a high-ranking foreign ministry official, arrived back from Tripoli on Monday evening. It was not accompanied by the two Swiss businessmen, who…
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On September 1, 1969, a small group of military officers led by then 27-year-old army officer Moammar Gaddafi overthrew Libya’s King Idris’ government. The revolutionary officers abolished the monarchy, and proclaimed the new republic. Gaddafi is to this day, referred to as the “Brother Leader and Guide of the Revolution” in government statements and the…
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If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.