The Libyan Center for Freedom of Press (LCFP) revealed Thursday that a number of Italian security personnel assaulted a group of Libyan journalists in Tripoli-based Mitiga airport on Wednesday as the journalists were covering the transfer event of the two Italian dead bodies killed by IS in Sabratha.

The assault by the Italian security personnel took place in the presence of delegates from Italian and Libyan Foreign Ministries, the LCFP remarked, adding that this assault has never happened before as foreign security personnel assaulted Libyan journalists in the presence of Libyan security forces, who escorted the assaulted journalists away from the incident spot.

The LCFP called on Italy’s Foreign Ministry to condemn the “crime” and the stigma to its authorities as they always brag about human rights and freedom but never practice them, urging the Italian Foreign Ministry to apologize for the Libyan journalists.

Relatedly, the LCFP urged Mitiga airport authorities to explain the details of the Italian personnel’s assault on the journalists, pointing out that the Associated Press photographer, Mohammed Ben Khalifa, was prohibited from shooting at the event spot, and he was also badmouthed by the Italian security personnel for no clear reasons, knowing that he and other journalists were permitted to shoot by Mitiga airport authorities.

“After spending two days at "Maetiga" airport in order to shoot the ceremony of transferring the Italian corpses that have been killed in Subrata during the clashes with ISIS, the special forces with the Italian delegation offended and hit "Reuters' cameraman "Hani Amara" and offended me while we were doing our job which is shooting the ceremony, however we got the permission from the Airport's security to shoot it.” AP photographer, Mohammed Ben Khalifa, posted on his Facebook page.