Militias in the eastern Libyan town of Derna have formed a new coalition in an attempt to resist a widely-expected assault by pro-government forces that now control most supply roads into the volatile coastal town.

(Beirut) – Armed militias that control the eastern city of Derna are terrorizing residents through summary executions, public floggings, and other violent abuse. The abuses are taking place in the absence of state authorities and the rule of law. The groups include some that have affiliated with the extremist group …

Libya’s Derna is emerging as a new stronghold for the Islamic State group

The black flag of ISIS flies over government buildings. Police cars carry the group’s insignia. The local football stadium is used for public executions. A town in Syria or Iraq? No. A city on the coast of the Mediterranean, in Libya.

A fourth man has been beheaded in a savage execution by militants which, as with the Derna murder of three young social activists on Tuesday, was again filmed and posted on social media.

Three young activists have been found beheaded in Derna, in eastern Libya. The three, who had relayed information about the city through social media, had been kidnapped earlier this month.

Following last week’s opening of an Islamic Court in Derna, the Shoura Council of Islamic Youth (SCIY), controlled by Al-Sharia, is now moving to set up a civil administration for the town and area that they now call the Province of Cyrenaica (Wilayah Barca, ولاية برقة), part of the Islamic …

Two men from the Cyrenaican town of Shahat died at the hands of Islamic extremists in Derna on Wednesday, according to a source from within the military.

Following its declaration of allegiance to the Islamic State (or Daesh), Derna’s Shoura Council of Islamic Youth (SCIY), part of the local Ansar Al-Sharia structure, has moved to formally institute an Islamic Court in the town.

While the Libyan state remains too weak to confront and disarm the plethora of militias still present within it, IS has been able to gain a foothold in the eastern city of Derna.