The large domed Ouagadougou complex is a landmark in Sirte, hometown of late dictator Muammar Gaddafi, and was used for meetings and religious instruction by Islamic State after they took control of the city past year. The fighters, who are mainly from the nearby city of Misrata, began their offensive against the militant group in June.
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A statement on the forces’ Facebook page declares that “Sirte is returning to Libya”.
As of Wednesday, U.S. drones and fighter jets had carried out 29 strikes in Sirte, targeting Islamic State fighting positions, vehicles and armaments, according to statements by U.S. Africa Command. Levin told Anadolu Agency that the information being shared with Libya’s United Nations -recognized Government of National Accord forces includes “key information about the fight in Sirte, and strikes against DAESH targets inside Sirte”.
ISIS militants seized control of the city, the hometown of Libya’s former dictator Muammar Gadhafi, in 2015.
In a quote from the article, European Council on Foreign Relations expert Mattia Toaldo explained that the US’s role in Sirte was different than elsewhere in Libya because the numerous political factions wouldn’t mind an intervention against ISIS’ spread.
He added that the reason for the presence of the U.S. troops, although it is little, is because of its unique experience in intelligence operations to detect the specific targets that need to be attacked.
It used an Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group.
Renzi’s center-left government has refused to confirm or deny reports that dozens of special forces have been deployed to help with demining and training pro-GNA forces. But U.S. and British personnel, carrying radios and wearing black body armor and tan fatigues, were seen in Sirte this week, according to officers allied with the Libyan government.
The fall of Sirte would be a huge setback to the jihadists’ efforts to expand their self-proclaimed “caliphate” beyond Syria and Iraq where they have also suffered a string of losses.
The advance comes after the United States launched air strikes on IS positions in Sirte on August 1.
Officials at the Pentagon said they could not confirm that the Islamic State’s headquarters in Sirte had fallen. “They even advanced some distance beyond the complex”.
On Monday, U.S. fighter jets could be heard zipping across the skies over Sirte, and there were loud explosions inside militant areas.
It was not immediately clear how many fighters on either side may have been killed in the clashes, but the operations center said earlier that at least 20 jihadists had died in fighting for the university campus.
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But the militias claimed to have taken the heavily fortified Ouagadougou Center, which the Islamic State had used as its headquarters. The country has been divided between warring parliaments and governments, with each backed by a loose array of militias and tribes.
