Gunmen surround Libya foreign ministry GUNMEN have surrounded Libya's foreign ministry demanding it be "cleansed of agents" of ousted dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said the interior ministry was also attacked and gunmen had attempted to storm the headquarters of Libyan state television. Armed men prevented foreign ministry staff from entering their building in Tripoli as they encircled it, reporters said. About 30 vehicles, some mounted with anti-aircraft guns, and dozens of armed men surrounded the offices, they reported. An official, who declined to be named, acknowledged the gunmen's demands that officials from the previous regime and still working in the ministry be removed were "legitimate." But he said it did not justify "paralysing the whole work of a ministry" and criticised the group's "extremely offensive" behaviour. The gunmen said they wanted the foreign ministry to be "cleansed of agents" of the former regime and stressed they will stand their ground until their demands are met. They also warned they could spread their action to other ministries. "Political exclusion is an obligation," one of the gunmen said, adding that former regime officials still hold key jobs at the foreign ministry. Zeidan urged people to help the government in resisting such armed groups. There are people who want to destabilise the country and terrorise foreigners and embassies. Hopefully, citizens will face them," he said. He noted that the encircling of the foreign ministry comes five days after the attack against the French embassy in Tripoli and said Sunday's action was likely aimed to "scare foreign companies and embassies." Last Tuesday, a devastating car bomb attack on the French embassy wounded a girl living nearby and two guards.