The first images are emerging of an explosion that struck the French Embassy in the Libyan capital of Tripoli.
At 7 a.m. local time, a car said to be carrying explosives was detonated outside the building in the smart residential area of al-Andalus.
The blast wounded two guards and destroyed the reception. Neighboring houses are also said to have suffered extensive damage.
Libyan Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdel Aziz has condemned the bombing as a “terrorist act.”
French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius is travelling to Tripoli where Libyan authorities are working closely with the French to find out who was responsible.
Security remains a concern in post-war Libya. A U.S. mission was attacked in Benghazi last September, but this incident marks the first strike on a diplomatic mission in the capital.