Today, ISIS officially retreated from Derna city amid a heavy airstrike campaign by the Libya’s Tobruk-based government.
For months, Islamic State fighters had entrenched themselves inside Derna city at the ‘400th District’ and southern al-Fatayeh suburb.
However, ISIS fighters were forced to flee south into the vast Libyan desert due to advancing government troops.
Up until now, Derna has been the site of a three-way conflict between the Libyan government troops, Islamist militias loyal to the Shura Council (al-Qaeda linked) and ISIS fighters.
Overnight, air strikes also targeted al-Qaeda affiliated fighters in the Sayeda Khadija district of Derna city and at the Bishr prison.
While Shura Council militants are still present in Derna, Libyan government troops now control the majority of the city as ISIS fighters have fled entirely.
Sabra, a spokeman of the Libyan Army said the Islamic State had retreated because of a year-long blockade and persistent shelling on ISIS militants.
Libyan soldiers posted videos of themselves in al-Fatayeh on Thursday, saying they had taken control of the area. The capture of al-Fatayeh road will now greatly speed up delivery of food and gas to Derna.
Meanwhile, Libyan government troops are also gaining ground inside Libya’s 2nd largest city Benghazi; just a few hundred ISIS fighters remain inside its western districts for now.
If ISIS loses the battle of Benghazi, they will be pushed back to their last Libyan stronghold; the port city of Sirte in central Libya. In this region, some 5.000 Islamic State fighters are still present.
Currently, ISIS in control of approximately 5% of Libya while today’s loss in the country’s eastern province of Derna has their the Islamic State territory diminishing further more.
208 - 208Shares
Be Civil
This is a Civilized Place for Public Discussion
Please treat this discussion with the same respect you would a public park. We, too, are a shared community resource — a place to share skills, knowledge and interests through ongoing conversation.
These are not hard and fast rules, merely guidelines to aid the human judgment of our community and keep this a clean and well-lighted place for civilized public discourse.
Make it better
Improve the Discussion
Help us make this a great place for discussion by always working to improve the discussion in some way, however small. If you are not sure your post adds to the conversation, think over what you want to say and try again later.
The topics discussed here matter to us, and we want you to act as if they matter to you, too. Be respectful of the topics and the people discussing them, even if you disagree with some of what is being said.
Now the hard part!
Be Agreeable, Even When You Disagree
You may wish to respond to something by disagreeing with it. That’s fine. But remember to criticize ideas, not people. Please avoid:
Instead, provide reasoned counter-arguments that improve the conversation.