Hollande made the announcement after three French troops were killed in Libya during a mission to gather intelligence. A military commander allied with a rival government based in eastern Libya has said that French troops along with US and British soldiers were in Libya to “monitor” Islamic State group jihadists. The armed groups, known as the Revolutionary Shura Council of Benghazi, urged Libyans to rise up against the deployment of foreign troops in the chaos-wracked country. “We call on all the Libyan people to mobilise and defend their (Muslim) religion… and expel” all foreign troops from Libya, a statement said. The French military presence in Libya is tantamount to a “crusader’s invasion”, it added.

Source: The Local July 23, 2016 10:07 UTC