Islamist Insurgents Kill 19 Military Servicemen in Eastern Libya

Baku. 26 December. REPORT.AZ/ A violent skirmish between Libyan soldiers and Islamist militants on Thursday, December 25, in eastern Libya claimed the lives of 19, while an oil tanker was damaged by a rocket at the port of Al-Sidra during a separate clash.

"Al-Sidra is located in a region known as the "oil crescent" that has been the scene of recent clashes between government forces and Fajr Libya [movement]," Agence France-Presse reported.

Since Al-Sidra is Libya's largest oil port, Fajr Libya's militants have attempted to maintain control over the strategic center.

"The armed forces on Thursday repelled an attack in which the Fajr Libya militia tried to seize the Al-Sidra oil terminal," said Ali Al-Hassi, spokesperson of the security forces located in the region, as quoted by Agence France-Presse.

Fourteen soldiers from the 136th battalion, loyal to former general Khalifa Haftar, were killed during the fighting while their four counterparts died later, during following attacks. According to a medical source at Sirte's Ibn Sina hospital, cited by the media outlet, only 18 corpses of dead soldiers have been found, as reports Report.