Unconfirmed Libyan media reports about a killing in which a "Russian woman" was implicated are considered as a possible motive for Wednesday's attack on the Russian Embassy in Tripoli.
An unidentified Libyan Interior Ministry official said "most likely, the attackers have expressed their protest against the killing of a Libyan army air service mechanic," the country's official news agency LANA reported.
Earlier Libyan media reported that authorities had arrested a Russian woman, who arrived to Libya via the border with Tunisia, on suspicion that she had shot a Libyan officer in his home in Tripoli and injured his mother.
Russian diplomats in the country have not confirmed the incident.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said on Ekho Moskvy radio that a group of unidentified persons had fired at the Russian Embassy in Libya on Wednesday and attempted to break in.
The Libyan interior ministry source confirmed that there were no injuries among the embassy staff and local security forces, although the building's front face was slightly damaged.
"About ten people driving two cars attacked the embassy," he said. "The attackers fled when security personnel interfered."
He said the attackers fired gunshots at the building and set fire to an embassy car.
Associated Press reported on Thursday that Libyan security forces shot one of the assailants dead and injured four.
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