Former Gaddafi aide killed fighting with IS in Libya

Former Gaddafi aide killed fighting with IS in Libya
A former aide to the deposed Libyan leader was killed as troops close in on the group's strongholds in the north African nation.
1 min read
30 May, 2016
Libyan troops are advancing on IS-held territory [Getty]
A prominent former aide to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has been killed while fighting with the Islamic State group, local Libyan media reported on Monday.  

Abu Islam al-Sarta was one of a number of former regime figures who joined the ranks of IS, according to local residents fleeing Sirtre, the main IS bastion in Libya.

Libyan forces loyal to the country's UN-brokered government are advancing in a push on two key Islamic State group strongholds.

Salem Jedran, the mayor of the town of Ajdabiya, says the troops of the "Petroleum Facilities Guards" are advancing on the town of Bin Jawad, which fell under IS control in January.

Jedran says clashes were underway on Monday in the eastern outskirts of the town. Bin Jawad is 160km (99 miles) from the central city of Sirte.

Elsewhere, Libyan militiamen from the western city of Misrata - also loyal to the UN-backed government - are pushing toward Sirte, the militant group's main stronghold.

The militia's media office says the fighters are now nearly 30km (18 miles) from Sirte city centre.


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