Libyan Military Kill 80 Daesh Militants in City of Sirte

Libya's military eliminated 80 Daesh militants in the city of Sirte.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Libya's military killed some 80 militants from the Daesh jihadist group in the coastal city of Sirte, Libyan forces' press service said in a statement on Monday.

"A large group of IS [Daesh] militants attacked our rear areas trying to reach the port. Our forces had soon regained the initiative and counterattacked," the statement published on the military operation's Facebook page said.

The statement added that 55 militants were killed in the area of the first attack, while 25 more were killed in one of the city's quarters.

Daesh, a terrorist organization outlawed in the United States, Russia and many other nations, gained a foothold in Libya in the turmoil following the 2011 ousting of the country’s long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi.

In September, the Libyan forces participating in a military operation in order to liberate the city, seized by the terrorist group in 2014, announced that they had surrounded Daesh fighters in a 0.4-square-mile area in Sirte.