Eye On Jihadis in Libya Weekly Update: December 25

On 25 December, four IS fighters undertook a suicide attack on Libya’s foreign ministry in Tripoli, killing three people and wounding at least 21 more. The assault began when a white Hyundai sedan exploded outside the ministry’s back gate, killing the driver. Two attackers died when they detonated their suicide vests on the building’s second floor while another was shot dead by security guards. IS’s Amaq website claimed responsibility for the attack on 26 December.

The three victims have been identified as: Abdulrahman Mazoughi, the spokesperson for the Tripoli Revolutionaries Brigade; Ibrahim Sheiby, director of the ministry’s Islamic Affairs Department; and Hend Arnaouti, a ministry employee.

On 20 December, twelve Egyptian children whose parents fought with IS in Sirte were handed over by authorities under the auspices of the Red Crescent to the Egyptian government. The children are aged between 5 and 14 years old.


Other Jihadi Actors

On 19 December, the commander of the Libyan National Army’s Jabal al-Akhdat Military Region claimed that several “extremists” undertook a suicide bombing on the Port of Benghazi. Security forces responded and arrested multiple assailants. The affiliation of the attackers has not been disclosed.

A weekly update of IS’s actions, the Western response, and developments pertaining to Libya’s other militias is available by subscribing here. To read about Western countries’ responses to IS in Libya this week, click here, and to read about the developments within the anti-IS Coalition of Libyan militias, click here. To read all four sections of this week’s Eye on IS in Libya report, click here.

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