AhlulBayt News Agency

source : Press TV
Thursday

1 September 2011

7:30:00 PM
263211

$15bn Libya frozen assets released

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has announced that 15 billion dollars of Libya's frozen assets have been unblocked to help North African nation's new governing team rebuild their shattered country.

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - "Around 15 billion dollars have been immediately unfrozen ... we want to give back to the Libyans the money that was frozen and that was stolen from them," Sarkozy said on Thursday.

France is to give back five billion euros ($7.1billion) of the frozen assets while Germany has asked the UN for agreement to release about one billion euros ($1.4billion) in seized assets.

The United States, with the consent of the UN, is also to release $1.5billion in frozen assets.

Britain has flown 280 million Libyan dinars ($227 million), printed in the UK, to Benghazi to be handed to Libya's Central Bank. The money will very quickly be available for cash machines and banks.

Britain will deliver $1.55 billion cash to Libya to enable the interim government to pay many public sector workers who have not received their salaries for a number of months, a Whitehall official said.

Libya's funds were frozen in February after the uprising against the Gaddafi regime began.

In March, a ship carrying Libyan currency worth around $162million was confiscated in British waters after the vessel was intercepted by UK authorities.

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