Libya’s Olympic President Released by Gunmen

Libya’s Olympic Committee president was released Sunday after he was abducted by gunmen in Tripoli in the middle of the day early last week.

Nabil al-Alam “is out and everything is okay,” said his office manager, Arafat Juwan, according to AFP.

Juwan said that “nine gunmen posing as members of the Libyan army removed Mr. Alam from his car in the center of the city… and took him to an unknown location,” underscoring the still dicey security situation in the country as many regions are policed by local militias while the central government is still weak.

“I have no idea who obtained his release but he was brought home this morning by the supreme security committee,” his brother, Saleh al-Alam, told the news agency. He added that no ransom was paid to secure his release.

Alam was a leader in the revolt that ousted longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi last year, the Libyan Olympic Committee stated, according to CNN. He even “bore arms to defend its principles until Libya was liberated from the tyranny,” the statement adds.

Before Gadhafi’s downfall, the strongman’s eldest son Mohammed, who is believed to be currently living in Algeria, headed the Olympic Committee.

Libyan athletes will compete in judo, weightlifting, the marathon, and the 100-meter sprint at the London Olympics.

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