Libyan Assassination Plot Claim Denied by Tunis

The internationally recognized Libyan government claimed on Friday that Tunisia had foiled a plot to assassinate its acting Interior Minister Moustafa Dabachi, an allegation denied by Tunis.

"There was an attempt to assassinate the interim interior minister in Tunis. We informed the Tunisian authorities and they thwarted it," government spokesman Hatem el-Ouraybi said, adding that a Tunisian had been arrested.

That assertion was echoed by the LANA news agency, which quoted a source close to the interior ministry as saying that the man arrested was linked to a "Libya terrorist group."

It added that the ministry had thanked Tunisia for foiling the plot.

In response, a Tunisian interior ministry statement sent to AFP said: "This news is untrue, and there was never an attempt" to kill Dabachi.

Plunged into chaos after the 2011 overthrow of strongman Moammar Gadhafi, Libya has two parliaments and governments vying for power, as a slew of armed groups battle for control of its oil wealth.