World Bulletin / News Desk

Tunisia's Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it can't confirm the death of two Tunisian journalists in Libya.

The ministry said in a statement that the Libyan charge d'affaires had made contacts with Libyan authorities and could not confirm that the two journalists had been killed.

The two journalists were abducted in Libya last September by Daesh-linked militants while working for Tunisia's privately-owned "First" TV channel.

At the time, local activists shared photos online showing the two journalists being held by an unidentified gunman.

In January, a rebel group in Libya's eastern town of Barqa announced that it had executed the two men.

On Wednesday, Libya's Tobruk-based government said that five people had been arrested for suspected involvement in the murder of the two journalists.

"Security agencies have detained five rebels who confessed to killing the two journalists," Justice Ministry spokesman Ahmed Jamhour said.