Category: Countries

IS in Action On 2 June, IS fighters attacked a police station in al-Qanan, 10km south-east of Ajdabiya, killing a civilian and injuring another five. No police were injured or killed despite two police cars being set aflame. The casualties were allegedly a family in a car passing by the raid. Later that day IS claimed responsibility for the attack, which was precluded by a supposed fake claim on behalf of the group. A go-pro camera recovered at the scene by the Libyan National Army’s (LNA) 21 Infantry Brigade has shown that the raid involved 8-9 fighters. Despite an official IS claim, local sources have suggested that incident was fabricated by police as an “IS attack” in an attempt to evade social and tribal responsibility. Other Jihadi Actors On 5 June, the Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesperson Ahmed al-Mismari announced that LNA forces had taken control of 75 percent of Derna from the Derna Protection Force (DPF). The day before in a video announcement to the LNA and civilians in Derna, Haftar highlighted to his troops the importance of protecting prisoners of war and warned of the dangers to civilians of Derna in aiding and abetting ‘terrorists”. He also said that the victory of his forces was near in Derna and that once the city is ‘liberated’, the LNA would take total control of the infrastructure and would ensure the safety of residents and buildings by establishing security barriers. A weekly update of ISIS’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 ISIS in Libya this week, click here, and to read about the developments within the anti-ISIS Coalition of Libyan militias, click here. To read all four sections of this week’s Eye on ISIS in Libya report, click here.