Islamic State group claims Libya bombing, killing three

A car bomb in eastern Libya that left three dead on Friday has been claimed by the Islamic State group.

2 min read

11 March, 2018

IS was driven out in 2016 but has carried out insurgent-style attacks since [Getty]

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for a car bombing at a checkpoint in eastern Libya that killed at least three armed men.

The attack on Friday targeted a checkpoint on the outskirts of the town of Ajdabiya said a Libyan official. The checkpoint was manned by the Libyan National Army, fighters loyal to Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who are battling militants in eastern Libya.

The extremists claimed the attack in a statement released late Saturday.

Last month, a report by a UN panel of experts found that Libyan forces may be helping rebel groups tighten their control of smuggling routes.

The confidential report sent to the UN Security Council also said the Islamic State group is seeking to join migrant smugglers in southern Libya after it was pushed out of Sirte in 2016.

A minister of the UN-backed government of national unity admitted to the panel that "the armed groups are stronger than the authorities in handling the flow of migrants."

The panel found that IS cells "continue to operate in central and southern Libya" despite their defeat in Sirte.

Mostly comprised of foreign fighters, IS has recently been trying to re-establish a foothold further south, sending envoys with "large quantities of cash" to develop contacts, said the report.

Libya was plunged into chaos after a popular uprising in 2011 and is today split between rival authorities backed by an array of militias. The Islamic State group was driven out of its onetime stronghold of Sirte in 2016 but has carried out insurgent-style attacks since then.