4/ Imagine that at one point in 2013/2014 there were 10 executions per day in Benghazi by extremists.
Main targets: Army officers, policemen, social activists, lawyers etc. Also Ansar al Shariah (same group that attacked U.S. consulate in 2012) had 120 checkpoints in Benghazi.
5/ By mid 2014 situation in Benghazi &rest of East Libya had become so grim that various jihadi groups (Qaeda, ISIS, etc) were on verge of declaring an Islamic State or Islamic Emirate in East Libya. (this was same period when ISIS declared caliphate in Syria/Iraq) @akhbar
6/ Demoralized by rise of extremists &weakened by all executions of its officers, Libyan army in Benghazi (which had joined anti-Ghadaffi uprising from beginning), pulled in mid 2014 out of Benghazi.
The city had effectively fallen into the hands of the extremists.
7/ Turning point came when Khalifa Heftar, head of Libyan army in the East, organized army &Libya's tribes and created "Operation Karama" (Operation Dignity).
Libyan army supported by locals fought from 2014 till end 2017 against ISIS, Al-Qaeda &all groups affiliated with them.
8/ After defeat of extremist groups in east Libya, by 2018 there was only one place where Al-Qaeda, ISIS etc still controlled territory.
That place was Derna.
Heftar's forces entered Derna on May 2018. They 1st took Temsekt hill, overlooking Derna. (see start of my report)
9/ Libyan army then conquered Derna's suburbs and pushed extremists deeper into Derna, a city which didn't see police or army presence since early 2013.
@HaraldDoornbos and I were first foreign reporters allowed into Derna since army offensive. This was our army escort:
10/ Some observations from my visit to Derna:
- Large parts of city liberated from extremists.
- Near to old city center still a pocket controlled by extremists. Libyan army surrounds it. I heard in distance shooting.
- New: Police is back in Derna, police cars drive around.
11/ Derna observations, part II:
- In army controlled parts, many cars on road, normal life returns.
- Some markets/shops open.
- Areas I visited weren't much destroyed. This isn't another Raqqa. (I don't know level of destruction inside extremists pocket).
- The extremist pocket inside city is marked with barricades, old cars, containers, rocks etc. Inside pocket fighting army vs extremists. Outside pocket locals move around as "normal" as possible.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
3/ ISIS files show court cases whereby (male) ISIS “spies” accuse Syrian females of having attended "mixed" weddings (males and females attended wedding). Also women were accused of wearing make-up.