The institution says operations will not resume until authorities intervene and its head of IT is released
Libya’s central bank (CBL) has suspended operations, citing the kidnapping of one of its senior employees in the capital, Tripoli, as well as threats against other officials as reasons for the decision.
The bank said in a statement on Sunday that an “unknown party” had abducted Musab Msallem, the director of its information technology department, earlier in the day in front of his home.
“The bank rejects the mob-like methods that are practiced by some parties outside of the law,” it stated.
The monetary authority declared that it would not resume operations until Msallem’s release, and until “relevant agencies” intervene against practices that “threaten the safety of its employees and the continuity of the banking sector’s work.”
Sunday’s kidnapping unfolded a week after gunmen reportedly laid siege to the central bank’s headquarters in Tripoli. The attackers demanded the resignation of the bank’s governor, Seddik al-Kabir, according to local media.
Last week, following a meeting with Kabir, US Ambassador to Libya Richard Norland denounced threats to the security of CBL staff and operations as “unacceptable.”
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