Libyan actors
Tracking developments of Libyan Actors in Libya’s security space including armed group activity, state security operations and political activities pertaining to Libya’s security.
8 August – 14 August: ISIS claim of attack on LNA and eulogize Kenyan fighter
On 13 August, ISIS Wilayat Barqah released a eulogy in their “Caravans of Martyrs” of Kenyan fighter. On 8 August, ISIS set up a checkpoint on the Abjabiya to Jalu road. In ISIS’s latest al-Naba newsletter the group claim a raid on a LNA checkpoint close to Fuqaha in Jufrah at dawn on 4 August.
8 August – 14 August: LNA launch airstrikes on Benghazi Defence Brigade forces
On 13 August, the Libyan National Army’s 101 Infantry Brigade clashed with Derna Protection Forces remnants near Gate 200 on the Tubruk-Ajdabiya highway. On 11 August, the Libyan National Army conducted airstrikes from its al-Jufra airbase targeting Benghazi Defence Brigade (BDB) forces located near al-Saddadah.
8 August – 14 August: HoR declare Italian Ambassador ‘persona non-grata’
On 9 August, the House of Representatives (HoR) Committee of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation declared Italian Ambassador Giuseppe Perrone as a ‘persona non-grata’. The decree is in response to his comments last week that were widely interpreted as dismissing Libyan elections.
8 August – 14 August: HoR hold its fourth session to vote on constitutional referendum
On 14 August, the House of Representatives (HoR) held its fourth session to date to discuss and vote on the legislation for a constitutional referendum.
1 August – 7 August: Alleged ISIS supporters release list of Libyan targets
Alleged ISIS affiliated social media accounts have released a list of over 200 hundred names of Misratan fighters from al-Bunyan al-Marsous as targets for assassination. On 29 July, sources reported that ISIS fighters set up a checkpoint 14 km south of Uqaylah.
1 August – 7 August: Libya mosques used for al-Qaeda and ISIS recruitment
Ahmed Abdul Karim Hamza, an official with Libya’s National Human Rights Committee, has stated that several mosques through Libya have being used by ISIS and al-Qaeda to radicalize and recruit youths.
1 August – 7 August: South Korea launches naval ship to Libya in “show of force”
On 2 August, South Korean redirected the naval ship “Munmu the Great” from anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden to Libya in order to protect South Korean commercial vessels. This action is thought to be a “show of force” in response to the kidnapping of a Korean technician.
1 August – 7 August: Clashes between militia groups throughout Tripoli
On 1 August, the Special Deterrence Force (Rada) killed a man thought to be from the al-Burga militia in the Tajoura area of Tripoli. On 2 August, forces under Ghneiwa al-Kikli captured a clothes and textile factory in the Al-Hadba al-Badry area of Tripoli. On 31 July and 1 August, a series of clashes occurred between the Surman CID and the al-Nasr militia.
25 July – 31 July: Additional details of ISIS attack on Uqaylah police station emerge
On 28 July, several vehicles belonging to ISIS fighters were observed south of Uqaylah moving to the 103 line towards the Kufra and Jalu region. Additional details have emerged surround ISIS’s attack on the police station in Uqaylah in Eastern Libya on July 24.