The Central Military Zone accused an armed group of kidnapping its commander, Major General Muhammad al-Haddad, on Saturday, September 1st, and taking him at gunpoint and depriving him of his liberty for hours.

In a press statement, Sunday, the Central Military Zone described this act as a cowardly action aimed to intimidate Major Haddad, noting that the attackers exploited his movement without an escort.

"Such cowardly acts will not dissuade the commander of the Central Military Zone nor his forces from performing their national duties with professionalism and discipline," the Central Military Zone affirmed, noting that it will give no further details on the incident as not to affect the investigations.

At the end of the statement, the Central Military Zone called upon all its officers and soldiers to abide by their work and not to be dragged behind rumors.

The commander of the Central Military Zone, Major General Mohammed al-Haddad, was kidnapped while leaving Misurata last Saturday and was detained for hours before being found in the area of Kirzaz east of the city.