Libyan forces fought suspected ISIS fighters, killing three of them near an oilfield run by Waha Oil in the southeast of the country, a local official said on Saturday. One soldier was killed and five wounded during two days of clashes, one of which took place near the Dhahra oilfield on Saturday, said Umar al-Faqeh, head of the Maradah administration to which the area belongs. The field is operated by Waha, a joint-venture between Libya’s state National Oil Company and US firms Hess, Marathon and ConocoPhillips. The oil protection force guarding the Waha operations is allied to country’s eastern government. The area has poor security and sources say it has been populated by ISIS fighters since they lost control of their stronghold in Libya, the central city of Sirte, in 2016.

Source: The North Africa Journal February 03, 2018 17:29 UTC