TRIPOLI, Libya (Reuters) — Gunmen surrounded Libya’s Foreign Ministry here on Sunday, calling for a law banning officials who worked for the nation’s deposed dictator, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, from senior positions in the new administration.

At least 20 pickup trucks loaded with antiaircraft guns blocked the roads while men armed with AK-47s and sniper rifles directed traffic away from the building, witnesses said.

Armed groups also tried unsuccessfully to storm the Ministry of Interior and the state news agency, the prime minister said.

“These attacks will never get us down and we will not surrender,” the prime minister, Ali Zeidan, told a news conference. “Those who think the government is frustrated are wrong. We are very strong and determined.”