Gunmen storm Libya congress ahead of PM vote

Militants stormed the Libyan parliament on Tuesday, forcing lawmakers to suspend a vote to elect a new prime minister.

The militants broke into the parliament compound and opened fire into the air as legislators were holding a second round of vote to elect the new premier, according to an Anadolu Agency correspondent.

The vote has been postponed to Wednesday, one lawmaker told AA.

Eyewitnesses said the militants were linked to one of the defeated candidates.

"Armed men have besieged the congress, but we do not know the motive of the attack," Tahar Mokni told AFP.

"We suspended our proceedings, and the vote has been postponed until next week," he added, with witnesses saying MPs had been evacuated from the building as shots continued to be heard.

The GNC, the country's highest political authority, had been preparing to hold a second vote between two candidates to replace Abdallah al-Thani, who stepped down over security fears less than a week after being appointed earlier this month.

A first vote was held earlier in the day among seven candidates. Businessman Ahmed Miitig, from the western city of Misrata, emerged as the frontrunner with 67 votes from the 152 deputies present.

University professor Omar al-Hassi, from the restive eastern city of Benghazi, was second, with 34 votes.

Some MPs said the attack was carried out by partisans of one of the two men after rumours began circulating that he would lose the vote.

A number of deputies, doubtful that either candidate would obtain the 120 votes required for election, proposed putting off the poll until a consensus candidate could be found.

Thani had been named to replace Ali Zeidan, who stepped down in March.

Libya has struggled to restore order and contain rampant militancy with the armed militias that helped overthrow late Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 holding onto their weapons.