The US administration has defended the abduction of suspected al Qaeda cadre Abu Anas al-Liby, saying he was a “legal and appropriate target”.
A Pentagon statement on Sunday said al-Liby was “currently lawfully detained under the law of war in a secure location outside of Libya”.
Al-Liby, suspected to be a computer specialist for al-Qaeda and is on the FBI most-wanted list, was captured on Saturday morning.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has also defended the detention, saying al-Liby would have “an opportunity to defend himself” in a US court of law.
“An indictment is an accusation. In our legal system the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty,
”I hope the perception is in the world that people who commit acts of terror and who have been appropriately indicted by courts of law, by the legal process, will know that United States of America is going to do anything in its power that is legal and appropriate in order to enforce the law and to protect our security,
“We hope that this makes clear that the United States of America will never stop in the effort to hold those accountable who conduct acts of terror. Members of al-Qaida and other terrorist organisations literally can run but they can't hide.”
In a statement the Libyan Prime Minister, Ali Zaidan, said:
"The Libyan government is following the news of the kidnapping of a Libyan citizen who is wanted by US authorities. The Libyan government has contacted US authorities to ask them to provide an explanation.”