On Thursday, 38 Egyptian nationals were kidnapped in Western Libya by criminal gangs, according to Libyan sources. They added that the kidnapped Egyptians are being held near the capital, Tripoli.
The kidnappers are demanding a 15,000 Libyan Dinar ransom for each kidnapped person to guarantee their release. Egyptian sources revealed to Al-Arabiya.net that the kidnapped people are from the village of Al-Umrah, which lies in the city of Abu Tasht in the Qena governorate in the South of the country. The kidnapped Egyptian nationals have allegedly entered Libya through questionable means.
Osama al-Hawari, the Egyptian Senator from Qena Governorate, said that the relatives of the kidnapped people informed the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the incident. He added that the Egyptian government immediately moved to coordinate and communicate with the Libyan authorities to free the kidnapped youth.
The kidnapping is the second incident within a week, as unknown persons kidnapped 10 Egyptians last Friday in the Libyan city of Tobruk and demanded a ransom in exchange for their release.