The battle between rival militias for control of the Libyan capital raged amid increased fighting over the past the past 24 hours, officials said Saturday, July 27, 2019, with both sides relying heavily on airpower to make progress in the stalemated fight. Hifter's self-styled Libyan National Army has been advancing into the city's southern outskirts, clashing with an array of militias loosely affiliated with the U.N.-recognized government based in the capital. Libyan officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief reporters, said Hifter's LNA launched airstrikes overnight against an air base in the western city of Misrata. The officials said the LNA also took control of the al-Naqliyah military camp in the south of Tripoli. Thousands of African migrants captured by Libyan forces supported by the European Union are trapped in detention centers near the front lines.

Source: Libya Today July 27, 2019 16:41 UTC