Libyan pro-government forces fighting Islamic State in Sirte have freed 11 Eritrean female captives, a Turk and an Egyptian after a battle to recapture a part of the city held by Islamic State, a spokesman for the forces said on Saturday. After a six-month campaign of street-by-street fighting backed by U.S. air strikes, Libyan forces have taken back most of Sirte, where Islamic State is holding out with snipers, boobytraps and car bombs. Forces fighting Islamic State in Sirte are mostly from nearby Misrata, whose brigades are among the most powerful in Libya. Western governments back the unity government hoping it will bring stability and help counter Islamic State and the migrant smugglers. Defeating Islamic State in Sirte will destroy the militant group’s main stronghold outside its Iraq and Syria territory just as Iraqi forces move to retake Mosul.

Source: Libya Today October 22, 2016 12:45 UTC