BBC News with Julie Candler
The International Criminal Court says four members of its staff have been detained in Libya, where they had gone to meet Saif al-Islam, the son of the late Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi. The president of the ICC says he's very concerned for the safety of the four and has called for their immediate release. Anna Holligan reports from The Hague.
The president of the ICC, Sang-Hyun Song, says they've been unable to
make contact with
the four since they were picked up on Thursday. Earlier a spokesman for the Libyan authorities told the media they were being held after the lawyer appointed by the ICC to represent Saif al-Islam had tried to give him documents that they said would be dangerous to the safety of Libya. The ICC representatives were on an official visit to the western mountain town of Zintan when they were detained. Saif al-Islam is wanted by the ICC for crimes against humanity, but the Libyan authorities want to hold the trial at home.
The Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said Moscow will continue to oppose any attempt by the UN Security Council to sanction military
intervention
to resolve the conflict in Syria. He said that using
external force
to end the crisis could cause instability across the region.
"All of this is a dangerous game. Our position remains unchanged. We will not agree to the use of force being authorised in the UN Security Council. That would lead to the gravest of consequences for the whole of the Middle East."