Libya general killed in attack on his Tripoli home

Unidentified gunmen shot dead a Libyan general on Sunday in an attack on his home in the capital that drew condemnation from the Tripoli-based government.

Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, head of the UN-recognised Government of National Unity, condemned the killing of General Ali Ramadan al-Rayani.

"It is with deep sadness that I mourn Brigadier General Ali Ramadan al-Rayani, who was martyred today while defending his home against a group of criminals," Dbeibah said in a statement.

Authorities have yet to comment on the motive of the attack that occurred in al-Khalla district on the southern outskirts of the capital.

Dbeibah said he ordered the military prosecutor's office to launch an "urgent and comprehensive investigation" to establish the facts and identify those responsible.

According to the Libyan news outlet Al-Wasat, witnesses reported that Rayani killed three of his attackers before he was shot dead.

Libya has struggled to recover from years of conflict after the 2011 NATO-backed uprising that overthrew longtime strongman Moamer Kadhafi.

It remains split between Dbeibah's government in the west and a rival authority backed by strongman Khalifa Haftar in the east.

In March, Libya's minister for cabinet affairs, Adel Juma, was wounded in an attempted assassination in the capital.

In April last year, an attack targeted the home and office of Dbeibah's nephew and adviser, Ibrahim Dbeibah, in Tripoli but left no casualties.