Passengers of hijacked Libyan plane arrive Tripoli

The passengers of the recent hijacked Libyan plane that was forced to land in Malta, arrived in Tripoli, Libya, on Saturday.

The state news agency reports that the passengers looked healthy as they disembarked an Afriqiyah Airways airliner that had transported them from Malta.

It says several government officials welcomed the passengers on their arrival at Mitiga airport in eastern Tripoli, not specifying their number.

An Afriqiyah Airways jet with 111 passengers and a six-member crew was hijacked on Friday when it was on a domestic flight from Sebha in southern Libya to Tripoli.

Two Libyan hijackers forced the Airbus A320 to divert to Malta.

After four hours on the Mediterranean Island, the hijackers surrendered and all the passengers and crew left the aircraft unharmed.

The Maltese government later revealed that the hijackers had used fake weapons.

Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat rejected media reports that the hijackers had asked for asylum in his country.

Libya descended into chaos since the 2011 overthrow of former President Muammar Gaddafi in an armed revolt.

The oil-rich country is divided between two rival administrations; one backed by the United Nations in Tripoli and the other in the eastern city of Tobruk.(dpa/NAN)