Islamic State gains Libya foothold - BBC News - 0 views
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"It is a failed state. Unlike other countries in the region, it does not have a semblance of government. This makes it the most vulnerable,"
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Moreover, Libya is rich in oil and, earlier this month, gunmen claiming to represent IS raided a French-run oil facility in al-Mabruk, south of Sirte city,
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many IS-aligned fighters collect salaries from the Libyan state," Jason Pack, a researcher in Libyan history at the UK's Cambridge University, told the BBC.
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Mr Pack points out that the country has three main power blocks: Libya Dawn (a mixture of Islamist and non-Islamist militias allied with the Tripoli-based government), Operation Dignity (led by forces loyal to General Khalifa Haftar and allied with the internationally recognised government based in the eastern city of Tobruk) and Jihadist groups (which include IS, al-Qaeda and Ansar al-Sharia - the most powerful of them). "There is a civil war between the two main groups [Libya Dawn and Operation Dignity]. The jihadists act as spoilers," Mr Pack says.