Libyans were preparing to celebrate the country's 60th anniversary of independence on Saturday, after it was banned for 42 years under former leader Muammar Gadhafi.
The interim ruling National Transitional Council ordered Saturday to be a public holiday. Celebrations were planned across the country, with the main official ceremony to be held in the capital Tripoli in the afternoon.
On December 24, 1951, Libya was declared independent under King Idris al-Sanusi, one of the leaders of the resistance to Italian occupation.
King Idris was later deposed in a 1969 military coup led by Gadhafi, who only allowed the date of his coup to be marked.
Libya's new leaders have got rid Gaddafi's plain green flag and reverted to the red, green and black flag that flew over Libya when the monarchy was in power.
