Libya Arrests Man Accused of Murdering 16 Egyptians

A picture published by the Libyan 444th Combat Brigade of the Libyan accused of killing 16 Egyptians
A picture published by the Libyan 444th Combat Brigade of the Libyan accused of killing 16 Egyptians
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Libya Arrests Man Accused of Murdering 16 Egyptians

A picture published by the Libyan 444th Combat Brigade of the Libyan accused of killing 16 Egyptians
A picture published by the Libyan 444th Combat Brigade of the Libyan accused of killing 16 Egyptians

A Libyan security unit affiliated with the Tripoli Military District arrested the man accused of shooting 16 Egyptians in Bani Walid in 2016.

The 444th Combat Brigade announced that its undercover unit succeeded in arresting the man, H.A., on Wednesday evening.

He is wanted by the Libyan Public Prosecutor for killing 16 Egyptians by firing squad, and all legal measures have been taken against him ahead of his transfer to the Public Prosecutor.

Spokesman Ahmed Abu Zeid said in a statement in April 2016 that the Egyptian “illegal immigrants” had been killed by members of a trafficking ring whose identities are still unknown.

Libya’s Armed Forces said that murders caused widespread anger at local and international levels and have been discussed extensively by Egyptian and Arab media.

They also stressed that the crackdown against crime would not stop anytime soon, adding: “We remind everyone that we will strike with an iron fist against anyone who dares to harm the security of citizens and residents, and that … criminals will be punished no matter where they escape.”

Meanwhile, the Magarha tribe, the family tribe of Abdullah al-Senussi, granted the Libyan authorities 72 hours to release him. Otherwise, it will have to reduce the water flow of the artificial river and oil supply.

Senussi, former chief intelligence and the son-in-law of the late President Muammar Gaddafi is imprisoned in Tripoli.

His tribe demands his immediate release because he suffers from a terminal illness and does not receive the necessary medical treatment.

Sheiks and notables in southern Libya quoted al-Anoud, Senussi’s daughter, saying that she has been banned from seeing her father since last January.

Anoud reported that her father has prostate cancer, and his health is deteriorating after being transferred to a prison supervised by Abdul Rauf Kara, who leads the “Special Deterrence Force.”

The tribe vowed that it “will not remain silent” over the detention of Senussi and threatened to reduce the waters of the artificial river flowing from the south and limit oil from the fields.

They appealed to the relevant human rights organizations, the United Nations and the Red Crescent, to release him.

Senussi, 71, is accused of suppressing the youth protests during the 2011 revolution. He is still being pursued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).



Israel’s Netanyahu: Attempt by Hezbollah to Assassinate Me Is ‘A Grave Mistake’

Israeli security forces secure a road near where Israel's government says a drone launched toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's house in Caesarea, Israel Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP)
Israeli security forces secure a road near where Israel's government says a drone launched toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's house in Caesarea, Israel Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP)
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Israel’s Netanyahu: Attempt by Hezbollah to Assassinate Me Is ‘A Grave Mistake’

Israeli security forces secure a road near where Israel's government says a drone launched toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's house in Caesarea, Israel Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP)
Israeli security forces secure a road near where Israel's government says a drone launched toward Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's house in Caesarea, Israel Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. (AP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attempt of Iran's proxy Hezbollah to assassinate him and his wife on Saturday was "a grave mistake," after his spokesman said a drone was launched from Lebanon at his holiday home.

None of the groups firing on Israel over the last year, including the Iran-backed Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, have claimed responsibility for that attack.

Israel’s government said a drone was launched toward the prime minister’s house Saturday, with no casualties.  

Sirens wailed Saturday morning in Israel, warning of incoming fire from Lebanon, with a drone launched toward Netanyahu’s house in Caesarea, the Israeli government said.

Neither he nor his wife were home, said his spokesperson in a statement.

The strikes into Israel come as its war with Lebanon’s Hezbollah — a Hamas ally — has intensified in recent weeks.  

Hezbollah said Friday that it planned to launch a new phase of fighting by sending more guided missiles and exploding drones into Israel. The armed group’s longtime leader, Hassan Nasrallah, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in late September, and Israel sent ground troops into Lebanon earlier in October.  

A standoff is also ensuing between Israel and Hamas, which it’s fighting in Gaza, with both signaling resistance to ending the war after Israel’s killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar this week.  

On Friday, Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, said Sinwar’s death was a painful loss but noted that Hamas carried on despite the killings of other Palestinian militant leaders before him.  

“Hamas is alive and will stay alive,” Khamenei said.