Martin Galea, photographed in 2011.

Retired army captain Martin Galea was abducted by Libyan rebel militias last week and his fate remains unknown despite diplomatic contacts between the Maltese government and representatives of his abductors.

The news that Mr Galea was taken by militias to an unknown location was broken in the afternoon by Times of Malta and just hours later Prime Minister Joseph Muscat made a statement in Parliament confirming the abduction and giving more details.

Dr Muscat said that last Sunday the government was informed that Mr Galea was taken by rebels and Malta immediately started diplomatic efforts to try to obtain his release.

Although contacts with the rebels continued even yesterday, Mr Galea had not been released yet and the Prime Minister admitted he could not guaranteed that the abducted Maltese man was still alive even though the latest information was that he was being held in captivity by the militias.

Admitting that the government could be criticised for not spilling the beans about the abduction, Dr Muscat said he wanted to ensure that the contacts with the rebels would not deteriorate because Mr Galea’s release was what really mattered.

We are acting prudently and we don’t want any information to be used against Mr Galea’s interests

“We are acting very prudently on this matter and we don’t want any information to be used against Mr Galea’s interests,” he insisted.

“We can’t afford to give those forming part of the militia and who are objecting to Mr Galea’s release the opportunity to prolong his seizure.”

Declaring the Opposition’s full solidarity with Mr Galea’s family, opposition leader Simon Busuttil urged the government to leave no stone unturned in its efforts to obtain Mr Galea’s release as soon as possible.

PN offers all help it can give

We can’t afford to give those in the militia who are against Martin Galea’s release any reason to hold him further- Joseph Muscat

Pointing out that the Opposition had not been informed by the government about this serious incident, not even confidentially, he said the Nationalist Party was still willing to offer all the assistance the government might need to obtain the safe release of the Maltese citizen.

The government should leave no stone unturned in its efforts to obtain Martin Galea’s release as soon as possible- Simon Busuttil

Dr Busuttil called upon the government to act with more transparency in such sensitive issues emerged, noting that the abduction of this Maltese citizen had occurred just a day after Foreign Affairs Minister George Vella declared that the situation in Libya was not so serious and that no evacuation of Maltese nationals was necessary.

Being stuck over there for the past 24 hours wasn’t much fun- Martin Galea

Sources in Libya told this newspaper the alarm was raised by members of Mr Galea’s immediate family last week when he failed to make the usual contact with his wife.

Mr Galea, who has been working as a health and safety officer with a gas and oil exploration company for the past months, apparently took a lift to his workplace in the desert outside Tripoli after his driver failed to pick him up.

The car he was in was stopped in a roadblock by militia rebels who took him in captivity.

Martin Galea

“It seems that some army-related equipment Mr Galea was carrying, including a pair of binoculars, raised the eyebrows of the militia who proceeded to arrest him immediately,” the sources said.

He was taken to an unknown location in rebel-held territory and his fate remains unknown. He has made no contact with his family since.

“His family have contacted his company and a number of institutions, including the Maltese and Libyan governments, but no one knows where he is being held,” the sources added.

Times of Malta is informed that contacts between Maltese diplomats and the rebels were established throughout this week. However, no breakthrough has been made yet in the negotiations to secure his release.

Intense diplomatic efforts through the Maltese Embassy in Tripoli are expected to continue today in a bid to bring Mr Galea back home.

Libya is in a state of turmoil with rebel militias fighting each other for the control of vast areas of the country and its rich resources.