Libyan army enters key city of Sirte

Forces loyal to the UN-brokered Libyan government have reportedly entered the coastal city of Sirte. It is the only city that ISIS holds outside Syria and Iraq, and some analysts had suggested that the group might consider using it as its capital if it lost control of Raqqa (Syria). For now, Sirte remains under the control of a key ISIS affiliate, but government forces are reportedly just 5km from the city centre. Heavy fighting is expected to continue as troops advance.

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Forces loyal to Libya's UN-backed unity government fire during clashes with jihadists of the Islamic State group around 14 miles west of Sirte on June 2, 2016. (Mahmud Turkia / AFP/Getty Images)

BENGHAZI, Libya — The spokesman for Libyan forces loyal to a U.N.-brokered government says his troops have advanced deep inside the coastal city of Sirte, the main stronghold of the Islamic State group's local affiliate.

Brig. Gen. Mohammed al-Ghasri tells The Associated Press that forces have seized a key bridge inside the city where the extremists used to hang the bodies of their enemies.

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He says his forces are only five kilometers (three miles) from the city center and a key square called Zafrana, where IS killed prisoners. The fighting on Wednesday killed five of his fighters and wounded another 25.

Sirte is the only IS-held city outside Syria and Iraq, and was seen by some as a fallback option for the capital of its self-styled caliphate.

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Associated Press