Sources from the Libyan National Army (LNA) told UAE based news outlet, Alittihad, that Qatar is transferring Islamic State (ISIS) militants from Iraq and Syria to Libya. It is alleged that Doha intends for the fighters to regroup in the South of Libya after major losses in Syria and Iraq.
The campaign against Islamist hardliners and suspected ISIS collaborators in Misrata intensified last week; 13 people were taken into custody, including several notable commanders and members of the Benghazi Defence Brigades (BDB) and Ajdabiya Shura Council. The arrests were conducted in accordance with the Libyan General Prosecutor’s issuance of over 800 warrants for arrest in connection with terrorism.
On 19 October, the LNA allegedly arrested a former ISIS member who was hiding in Derna. Anis Bujeela al-Awami (aka al-Asla) purportedly joined ISIS in 2014, before defecting to the DMSC with other fighters in 2015, prior to the ISIS withdrawal from the city that year.