The Central Bank of Libya has announced the suspension of all its operations after a senior employee was kidnapped in Tripoli, the country’s capital.
The bank denounced the abduction of its information technology director Musab Msallem in a statement on Sunday.
Msallem was taken from his home by an “unidentified party” on Sunday morning and other employees have been threatened with kidnapping, BBC reported.
The central bank said it will not resume operations until Msallem is released.
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The central bank, which is independent but owned by the Libyan state, is the only internationally recognised depository for Libyan oil revenues – a vital economic income for a country torn for years between two rival governments in Tripoli and Benghazi.
It comes a week after the central bank suffered a siege by armed men, according to AFP news agency.
According to local media, cited by AFP, the armed men did so to force the resignation of the bank’s governor Seddik al-Kabir.
Since the ousting and killing of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the country has suffered from chronic insecurity.
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