ISIS is consolidating its grip on Sirte and the surrounding regions, while executions of members of the large local tribes Furnaj and Gadadafa have continued. ISIS reportedly executed three Libyan National Army soldiers in Sirte on 25 March after they were kidnapped in their hometown of Ajdabiya, while on leave from Benghazi. Another man was flogged in the city centre for alleged fornication. The punishments were published in a short video, ‘Applying Hudud in Sirte part 3’. ISIS reportedly kidnapped another four people from the Mugharba tribe in Al Nawfliya on 27 March.
Meanwhile Amaq, the ISIS media arm, published a new episode in a long series of Sirte promotional videos encouraging ISIS fighters to come to the city. The video showcased farming in an attempt to demonstrate the relative serenity and prosperity enjoyed by the city under ISIS rule. Local sources report that more ISIS recruits from Sabratha arrived in Sirte last week, and that the number of fixed checkpoints inside Sirte has increased to eight, with additional positions west, south and east of the city. Additionally, ISIS has seized more than 25 ambulances from Ibn Sina hospital and clinics in nearby towns.