Islamic State affiliates attack prison in Libya’s capital

PanARMENIAN.Net - Four militants loyal to the Islamic State attacked a prison on Friday, September 18, inside the air base that serves as the only working airport for Tripoli, the Libyan capital, according to statements by the group and by the political faction that controls the city. It was one of the group’s most aggressive forays into the capital, the New York Times reports.

A militia operating out of the air base successfully rebuffed the attack, killing all or most of the attackers, according to spokesmen for the Tripoli government.

A group calling itself the Tripolitania Province of the Islamic State released a statement claiming responsibility for the assault, saying the aim was to free prisoners held at the facility. The group said its fighters “clashed with the guards and killed and wounded many of them.”

A photograph with the statement showed the four fighters said to have carried out the attack sitting on a grassy lawn. The militia that beat back the assault said three of its fighters were killed, along with a prisoner who had fought at their side. The base, once used by the American Air Force, is known as Mitiga International Airport.

Fighters operating under the banner of the Islamic State’s Tripolitania Province also control the city of Surt. The group has staged attacks in Tripoli before, including a mass shooting that killed at least eight people at a luxury hotel in January and bombings at diplomatic and government buildings.