Magharebia

Former Libyan Prime Minister Al-Baghdadi Ali Al-Mahmoudi, who remains detained in Tunisia, has started a hunger strike, his lawyer Mabrouk Kourchid told AFP on Monday (May 21st).

According to the attorney, Al-Mahmoudi's action comes in response to Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali's statement last week that Tunisia would not be "a shelter for those who may threaten Libya's security". Jebali was speaking during the visit of his Libyan counterpart Abdurrahim El Keib to Tunis.

In November, a Tunisian court ruled in favour of Libya's extradition request for Al-Mahmoudi. Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki has said that Tunisia would extradite the former Kadhafi official when conditions were in place for a "fair trial".

Libya is seeking al-Mahmoudi on charges of inciting rape in the north-western town of Zuwarah during the anti-Kadhafi revolution. The 67-year-old former prime minister is appealing his extradition.