DHAKA: Gunmen stormed a luxury hotel in Libya's capital, killing at least 11 people, including three guards and five foreigners, before blowing themselves up after being surrounded by security, officials said.

The attack, which included the use of a car bomb, struck the popular Corinthia Hotel, which sits along the Mediterranean Sea and is a major hub for diplomatic and government activity in Tripoli.

Mahmoud Hamza, commander of the so-called Special Deterrent Force, told private satellite television station al-Nabaa that the situation was "under control'' by Tuesday afternoon.

He confirmed that five foreigners had been killed, without giving further details, according to a report from the AP news agency.

Issam al-Naass, a spokesman for security services, later told the AFP news agency that the gunmen blew themselves up after being surrounded on an upper floor.

"After being pursued and surrounded on the hotel's 24th floor, the attackers detonated explosive belts they were wearing," Naass said.

According to security sources at the scene, the attack began when four armed men detonated a car bomb in front of the hotel, killing a guard, before rushing inside.

Libya is mired in conflict between two rival governments - an internationally recognised one based in eastern Libya and a rival administration set up in Tripoli after an armed faction called Libya Dawn took over the capital.

The attack comes as a new round of UN-mediated peace talks between Libya's rival factions started in Geneva on Monday as they seek to implement a roadmap on forming a unity government.

Mary Fitzgerald, a journalist reporting from Libya, told, "The incident today sends a message that Tripoli is not secure."

"This will undermine the message that they are trying to send," she said, referring to the government based in the Libyan capital.

Source: Al-Jazeera

BDST: 0948 HRS, JAN 28, 2015