WASHINGTON: Six U.S. air strikes on an Islamic State desert camp in Libya killed 17 militants and destroyed three vehicles, the U.S. military said on Sunday, the first American strikes in Libya since President Donald Trump took office in January. U.S. Africa Command said in a statement that strikes on Friday targeted a camp 150 miles (240 km) southeast of Sirte, a city that was once the Islamic State stronghold in Libya. “ISIS and al-Qaeda have taken advantage of ungoverned spaces in Libya to establish sanctuaries for plotting, inspiring and directing terror attacks,” the statement said, using an acronym for Islamic State. The last-known U.S. strike in Libya was on Jan. 19, a day before Trump’s inauguration, when more than 80 Islamic State militants, some believed to be plotting attacks in Europe, died in U.S. air strikes on camps outside Sirte. Islamic State militants have shifted to desert valleys and inland hills southeast of Tripoli as they seek to exploit Libya’s political divisions after their defeat in Sirte.

Source: New Strait Times September 24, 2017 23:03 UTC