Mokhtar Khalifa, the Sirte mayor, has told The Associated Press that the city’s southern and western sections are under control of the Libyan fighters loyal to the United Nations -brokered government as of Thursday.
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A Libyan official says USA -backed forces in Libya have liberated “70 percent” of the city of Sirte, the Islamic State group’s last bastion in the North African country.
Libyan television broadcast images of flag-waving soldiers in recaptured areas including the Ouagadougou centre, flashing victory signs as they posed for photographs. The pro-government forces in Sirte are mostly militia fighters from the nearby city of Misurata.
Losing Sirte city would be a major setback for Islamic State, already under pressure in Syria and Iraq.
But even with the aid of U.S. airstrikes, pro-government forces have found it challenging to push into militant territory as they face an array of obstacles, including land mines, snipers and booby-trapped buildings. They also posted a photo of the leaders of Al Bonian Al Marsous studying a map of the city. Clashes have been sporadic, with heavier fighting interspersed with lulls that last for several days. After that, the offensive stalled, with the Libyan forces insisting they were “resting” before another push.
In a statement on Wednesday, the US Africa Command said 29 strikes had been carried out against IS positions as part of “Operation Odyssey Lightning” as of Tuesday.
In our news wrap Wednesday, U.S. -backed forces in Libya say they have captured the Islamic State headquarters, located in the city of Sirte.
It was not immediately clear how many fighters on either side may have been killed in the clashes, but the operations centre said earlier that at least 20 jihadists had died in fighting for the university campus.
The Pentagon last week announced it had started an air campaign in Sirte following a request for help from the Libyan Government of National Accord. Issa said the cause of the crash and the fate of the crew could not be confirmed.
Libyan militants returning from combat in Syria’s civil war helped implant Islamic State in Libya in 2014, but IS has struggled to win support or hold territory as most local people regard it as a malign import dependent on foreign fighters.
Militants seized control of the city past year. The U.N. -backed government in Tripoli is the latest attempt to end the conflict.
IS seized Sirte, the hometown of Libya’s former dictator Moammar Gadhafi, in 2015 and Libyan pro-government forces launched an operation to retake it in June.
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The Post said the U.S. forces are operating alongside British troops, and are helping to coordinate American airstrikes and providing intelligence to partner forces.
