from the Guardian: UPDATE
The Libyan prime minister, Ali Zeidan, has called for calm after being released by rebels who kidnapped him in the early hours of Thursday morning.
“Libyans need wisdom … not escalation … to deal with this situation,” he said during a televised cabinet meeting in which he thanked those rebels who helped in his release and urged them to join the regular armed forces.
Zeidan was returned under armed escort to the Tripoli hotel from where he was seized in a brief but dramatic kidnapping. He was taken from his room at 4am by armed men who escorted him from the Corinthia hotel and held him captive.
Libyan television showed him returning to his Tripoli office at about 1.30pm local time (12.30pm BST) wearing a business suit and flanked by dozens of soldiers in red berets. In his brief TV statement, Zeidan gave no details about his ordeal and avoided pointing fingers at those behind the abduction. Associated Press quoted him as saying: “We hope this matter will be treated with wisdom and rationality, far from tension. There are many things that need dealing with.”
In a 10-minute phone call with Zeidan following his release, David Cameron said Britain would continue to support Libya in its transition from the rule of the late dictator Muammar Gaddafi.
Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan was kidnapped from his Tripoli hotel at dawn on Thursday by an armed group and taken to an unknown location, the government and sources said. “The head of the transitional government, Ali Zeidan, was taken to an unknown…