Libya has announced a total economic boycott of Switzerland. This is the second punitive measure imposed by the government of Tripoli in the last few days.

Last week Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi called for a holy war - a jihad - against Switzerland following the country's ban on the further building of minarets on mosques.

Tripoli has been embroiled in a diplomatic row with Bern since 2008, when Swiss police briefly detained one of Mr Gaddafi's sons.

A few days after the arrest, Libya arrested two Swiss businessmen. One of them was recently released, but the other is still jailed.

Trade relations between the two countries are modest. In 2009 Swiss export to Libya was worth 145.7 million dollars, 0.08 of Switzerland's total export. The country's main import from Libya is crude oil. In 2009, this amounted to around 30 percent of all Swiss oil imports.