The freed Turkish employees were reported to have returned to the ship owned by a Libyan company and decided to continue working over there.

Issuing a statement over the detained six Turkish citizens, Turkish Foreign Ministry highlighted that "Hafter elements will become a legitimate target" if not "release Turkish citizens immediately".

The ministry also advised Turkish citizens in Libya to avoid steps that would endanger their own security and stay out of conflict zones.

"If our citizens are not released, the consequences will be severe," Vice President Fuat Oktay said in a statement on the detention of Turkish citizens in Libya.

ILKHA