The terrorist attack on Tuesday, Jan. 27, at the luxury Corinthia Hotel in Tripoli, Libya, carried out by an ISIS-affiliate, resulted in the death of at least 10 people. The dead included a former U.S. Marine.
The American, David Berry, was a contractor with Crucible, a security firm. Berry served as a U.S. Marine from 2000 until 2012. A report on social media states that Berry was shot.
The Islamic State in Tripoli Province, a Libyan branch of ISIS, claimed responsibility for the attacks. It named the terrorists: Abu Ibraheem Al-Tunsi and Abu Sulaiman Al-Sudani. Those last names indicate one was of Tunisian background and the other Sudanese. Both were reportedly Libyan nationals.
The attack was believed to be carried out to avenge the capture of an alleged al Qaeda operative, Abu Anas al-Libi, who had been accused of playing a role in the bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. Al-Libi died in U.S. captivity, awaiting trial.
The terrorists shot their way into the hotel, according to CNN. A car bomb was also detonated in the parking lot of the hotel during the attack. The two terrorists blew themselves up when security forces began closing in on them.
In addition to Berry, one French citizen and three Tajikistanis were killed in the attack, according to preliminary reports. The remaining five dead are all believed to have been Libyans.
The Prime Minister of Libya, Omar al-Hassi, was staying in the hotel, just two floors away from where the focus of the attack took place. Al-Hassi was hustled out of the building and escaped harm.
This is the first major attack on foreign nationals in Libya since the September 2012 Benghazi attack in which four Americans were killed.