MOSCOW, October 7 (RAPSI) – UK Members of Parliament will seek answers from Home Secretary Theresa May in connection with the 1995 decision to extend a grant of asylum to Abu Anas al Libi, The Telegraph reported Monday.
US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced Sunday that US forces had captured al Libi in Libya, explaining in a statement: “As a result of the Libya operation, one of the world’s most wanted terrorists was captured and is now in U.S. custody. Abu Anas al Libi was designated as a global terrorist by Executive Order, was a subject of the [US] Rewards for Justice Program, and is on the UN Al Qaeda sanctions list.” He noted that a second operation had been carried out in Somalia.
Hagel added that al Libi had been indicted for his alleged role in the 1998 US embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, along with other plots targeting US interests.
According to The Telegraph, he was granted asylum in 1995. Citing a former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) official, the report added that al Libi was questioned by police after the bombings, and fled the country shortly following his release.
Home Secretary May will reportedly be questioned by MPs Tuesday, in order to establish whether all proper procedures had been followed in connection with his grant of asylum.
In a separate statement delivered in Bali, Indonesia Sunday, US Secretary of State John Kerry noted that the attacks should be taken as a warning: “We hope that this makes clear that the United States of America will never stop in its effort to hold those accountable who conduct acts of terror. And those members of al-Qaeda and other terrorist organizations literally can run, but they can't hide. We will continue to try to bring people to justice in an appropriate way, with hopes that, ultimately, these kinds of activities against everybody in the world will stop.”
The Guardian reported Monday that Libya had demanded answers in connection with the “kidnapping” of a citizen by US Special Forces.
The AP reported that the Somalia raid ended with a retreat by US forces after 15-20 minutes of fierce firefighting.