The Islamic State group has captured the Libyan town of Ben Jawad, close to the country’s vital oil ports, the militants said Monday.
IS, which has taken advantage of years of chaos to grab territory in Libya, made the claim in an online statement. There was no one from Libya’s authorities immediately available to comment on the town’s capture, France 24 reported.
IS insurgents also clashed with a force guarding the nearby Es Sider oil export terminal on Libya’s coast Monday, according to witnesses, while the IS group said they had set off a suicide car bomb during the fighting, causing casualties.
