Islamic State Stronghold At Sirte In Libya Near Collapse

New York Times: U.N.-Backed Libyan Fighters Push Toward ISIS Stronghold of Surt

CAIRO — Libyan fighters aligned with the United Nations-backed unity government on Thursday battled their way toward the center of Surt, the Islamic State’s coastal stronghold, in a rapid offensive that has confounded expectations and upended Western strategic calculations.

Only a few months ago, American generals were touting a plan to dislodge the Islamic State from Surt with a campaign of airstrikes. Yet the three-week-old Libyan ground offensive, led by a brigade from the nearby city of Misurata, has gradually closed in from the west and south, capturing an airfield, military bases and a traffic junction where the Islamic State has hanged dozens of people.

The swiftness and extent of these successes and the seeming inability of the Islamic State to hold on to territory has surprised observers inside and outside Libya.

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More News On The War Against The Islamic State In Libya

Libyan Forces Enter Sirte as Islamic State Resistance Weakens -- Bloomberg
Islamic State stronghold in Libya near collapse -- Washington Times
Isis in Libya: Jihadists 'shaving off beards' to blend in with civilians as they flee government advance on Sirte -- The Independent
Libya unity forces pound IS in bastion Sirte -- AFP
Libyan forces fight Islamic State in Sirte, predict city to fall soon -- Reuters
Libyan forces claim to have ousted Isis from final stronghold -- The Guardian
Libya government forces expect to expel Isil from Sirte 'within days' -- The Telegraph
Libya conflict: Government forces 'advance' against IS-held Sirte -- BBC
Libyan forces make gains against ISIL in Sirte -- Al Jazeera
Libyan militias near IS stronghold, Sirte -- DW