Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said on Friday evening that he could not give assurance that (the abuducted) Martin Galea was still alive, although the last information he had was he was around.

"The situation was, however, constantly evolving," said Muscat.

Malta's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed on Friday that a 42-year-old Maltese worker has been abducted by Libyan rebel militias outside Tripoli, capital of Libya.

Martin Galea, who works for oil and gas company Nageco, was abducted by rebel militia while he was on his way to work in a car driven by a Libyan national, on the outskirts of Tripoli on July 17. The abduction was first made public today by Times of Malta.

The car was stopped at a road block and Galea, the retired captain of the Armed Forces, was taken away. Local newspaper Independent quoted its sources as saying that "no news has been received about him and a search for him has so far proven futile."

Both Maltese police and the foreign ministry were informed about the case last week, The government has not made any official announcement yet.

In a statement, the Nationalist Party expressed its concern over the abduction of the man and noted that the government is still insisting that the situation in Libya is not serious. Endi

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