Libyan PM Ali Zeidan has been seized by armed
men in the capital, Tripoli.
Mr Zeidan was taken from his hotel before dawn "by
gunmen to an unknown place for unknown reasons",
said a government statement.
A former rebel group loosely allied to the government
said it had arrested him following a prosecutor's
warrant. The government has denied this.
The government has been under pressure after US
commandos seized senior al-Qaeda suspect Anas al-
Liby in Libya.
Mr Liby was snatched on Saturday in Tripoli. He is
wanted in the US over the 1998 bombings of US
embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
On Monday, Libya demanded an explanation from the
US ambassador over the incident.
The government is also struggling to contain rival tribal
militias and Islamist militants who control parts of the
country, two years after the revolt which overthrew
Muammar Gaddafi.
Cabinet summoned
The BBC's Rana Jawad, in Tripoli, says the details of Mr
Zeidan's capture remain unclear, but that he was taken
by armed men from a hotel he resides in in the early
hours of the morning.
Al-Arabiya broadcast images apparently showing Mr
Zeidan being taken away
Al-Arabiya TV station broadcast images which showed
Mr Zeidan looking dishevelled and being escorted by
what the station said were armed men.
The government website said he had been taken "to an
unknown place for unknown reasons by a group
thought to be from the Tripoli Revolutionaries Control
Room and the Committee for Fighting Crime".
The government statement did not name the hotel, but
a woman at the Corinthia Hotel - where the prime
minister lives - confirmed the incident happened there
when armed men entered the building.
She said no-one had been killed.
Our correspondent says there are a number of militia
groups operating in Libya which are nominally attached
to government ministries but often act independently.
One of them - the Operations Cell of Revolutionaries -
said it was acting on the orders of the prosecutor
general in accordance with Libya's penal code.
However, state-run National Libyan TV quoted Justice
Minister Salah al-Marghani as saying that the
prosecutor general had issued no such order.
Libya's cabinet has been summoned for an immediate
meeting under the leadership of the deputy prime
minister.
UK Foreign Secretary, William Hague condemned the
capture and called for Mr Zeidan's immediate release.
"It is vital that the process of political transition in
Libya is maintained. The government and people of
Libya have our full support at this concerning time," he
said.
'Act of sabotage'
In an interview with the BBC on Monday, Mr Zeidan had
said Libya was being used as a base to export weapons
throughout the region, and called on the West to help
stop militancy in Libya.
Last month Mr Zeidan visited the UK and appealed for
British help to remove weapons from the country amid
fears of increased arms smuggling to Syria.
In April he urged Libyans to back their government in
the face of "people who want to destabilise the
country".
He also complained at that time of other attacks and
"acts of sabotage" carried out by separate groups,
against the interior ministry and national TV
headquarters.
men in the capital, Tripoli.
Mr Zeidan was taken from his hotel before dawn "by
gunmen to an unknown place for unknown reasons",
said a government statement.
A former rebel group loosely allied to the government
said it had arrested him following a prosecutor's
warrant. The government has denied this.
The government has been under pressure after US
commandos seized senior al-Qaeda suspect Anas al-
Liby in Libya.
Mr Liby was snatched on Saturday in Tripoli. He is
wanted in the US over the 1998 bombings of US
embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
On Monday, Libya demanded an explanation from the
US ambassador over the incident.
The government is also struggling to contain rival tribal
militias and Islamist militants who control parts of the
country, two years after the revolt which overthrew
Muammar Gaddafi.
Cabinet summoned
The BBC's Rana Jawad, in Tripoli, says the details of Mr
Zeidan's capture remain unclear, but that he was taken
by armed men from a hotel he resides in in the early
hours of the morning.
Al-Arabiya broadcast images apparently showing Mr
Zeidan being taken away
Al-Arabiya TV station broadcast images which showed
Mr Zeidan looking dishevelled and being escorted by
what the station said were armed men.
The government website said he had been taken "to an
unknown place for unknown reasons by a group
thought to be from the Tripoli Revolutionaries Control
Room and the Committee for Fighting Crime".
The government statement did not name the hotel, but
a woman at the Corinthia Hotel - where the prime
minister lives - confirmed the incident happened there
when armed men entered the building.
She said no-one had been killed.
Our correspondent says there are a number of militia
groups operating in Libya which are nominally attached
to government ministries but often act independently.
One of them - the Operations Cell of Revolutionaries -
said it was acting on the orders of the prosecutor
general in accordance with Libya's penal code.
However, state-run National Libyan TV quoted Justice
Minister Salah al-Marghani as saying that the
prosecutor general had issued no such order.
Libya's cabinet has been summoned for an immediate
meeting under the leadership of the deputy prime
minister.
UK Foreign Secretary, William Hague condemned the
capture and called for Mr Zeidan's immediate release.
"It is vital that the process of political transition in
Libya is maintained. The government and people of
Libya have our full support at this concerning time," he
said.
'Act of sabotage'
In an interview with the BBC on Monday, Mr Zeidan had
said Libya was being used as a base to export weapons
throughout the region, and called on the West to help
stop militancy in Libya.
Last month Mr Zeidan visited the UK and appealed for
British help to remove weapons from the country amid
fears of increased arms smuggling to Syria.
In April he urged Libyans to back their government in
the face of "people who want to destabilise the
country".
He also complained at that time of other attacks and
"acts of sabotage" carried out by separate groups,
against the interior ministry and national TV
headquarters.
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