Libyan rebels said the U.S. seizure of a tanker that loaded crude at a port under their control was an illegal act of piracy, according to a statement run by a rebel television station on Tuesday, Reuters reported.
Abb-Rabbo al-Barassi, the rebels' self-declared prime minister, said the storming of the tanker by U.S. Navy commandos had violated international law, the statement said.
Last week, the tanker had loaded oil at the rebel-held Es Sider port and escaped the Libyan navy before U.S. forces seized it on Sunday night off the Cyprus coast.