BBC team beaten by Gaddafi soldiers
Three reporters were trying to reach the western city of Zawiya when they were detained at an army control point where they were asked to show identification, dpareported.
They were then brought to a military facility, where they were blindfolded, placed in handcuffs and beaten, the broadcaster said.
Journalist Chris Cobb-Smith, described how a plain-clothes soldier held a small sub-machine gun to his neck.
"Then he walked up to me, put the gun to my neck and pulled the trigger twice. The bullets whisked past my ear. The soldiers just laughed," he said.
Another correspondent, Feras Killani, who is of Palestinian origin, reported being frequently beaten and accused of being a spy.
Cameraman Goktay Koraltan said all three became convinced they were going to be killed during their 21-hour detention.
The men have since left Libya and a government official later apologized for their treatment.
The BBC strongly denounced the mistreatment of journalists.
"The safety of our staff is our primary concern especially when they are working in such difficult circumstances and it is essential that journalists working for the BBC, or any media organization, are allowed to report on the situation in Libya without fear of attack," said the statement from Liliane Landor, languages controller of BBC Global News. Kazinform cites Trend News. See www.en.trend.az