2015 Corinthia Hotel attack

Corinthia Hotel Attack

The Corinthia Hotel main tower
Location Corinthia Hotel Tripoli, Tripoli, Libya
Date 27 January 2015 (2015-01-27)
09:00 (UTC+2)
Attack type
 car bombing; mass shooting, suicide bombing
Deaths 10 (not including the perpetrators)
Perpetrators

 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant[1]

Motive 2013 arrest of Abu Anas al-Libi by U.S. forces

In January 2015, the Corinthia Hotel in Tripoli was attacked by men affiliated with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).[1] The hotel was popular with foreign officials and government workers; it had previously housed the Libyan Prime Minister.

Attack

In the early hours of 27 January 2015, ISIL-affiliated men detonated a car bomb in the parking garage of the hotel. In the chaos, an estimated 5 gunmen stormed past the local guard and entered the hotel, intent on killing guests.[2]

Some of the attackers survived the initial contact, leading to a protracted hostage situation.[3]

Victims

Five foreigners died in the attack: one American, one Frenchman, and three Tajiks (including two women). The American, David Berry, was working as a contractor for an American security firm named Crucible. Five Libyan security personnel are also reported to have died in the attack.[4]

Perpetrators and motivations

The attack was carried out by men belonging to ISIL's "Tripoli Province", who are believed to have been natives of Libya. The attackers' stated objective was revenge for the death of Abu Anas al-Libi, a Libyan Al-Qaeda operative who was involved in the bombing of two American embassies in 1998. He was captured by American forces inside Libya in 2013, and died in an American hospital on 2 January 2015.[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "′Islamic State′ attacks Libya hotel - News - DW.DE - 27.01.2015". DW.DE. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  2. ↑ Faucon, Benoit (28 January 2015). "Gunmen Stage Deadly Attack on Libyan Hotel". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  3. ↑ "Libya hotel attack: Five foreigners among nine killed". BBC News. 28 January 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  4. 1 2 Karadsheh, Jomana; Alkhshali, Hamdi (28 January 2015). "Gunmen attack Corinthia Hotel in Libya; at least 10 die". CNN. Retrieved 28 January 2015.

Coordinates: 32°53′49″N 13°10′15″E / 32.8969°N 13.1708°E / 32.8969; 13.1708

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