Summary
The self-styled Libyan National Army seized most of the eastern coastal city of Derna from extremist groups who have controlled it for years, a spokesman said Friday, amid fierce fighting since late April.
After blockading the city from mid-2016, the LNA launched a ground offensive to capture it from the Derna Protection Force earlier last month.
Prior to his arrest,Osta said such claims were false and there were no foreign fighters or Al-Qaeda militants in Derna.
He pointed out that fighters from the Derna Mujahideen Shura Council, as the DPF was previously known, had driven Daesh (ISIS) militants out of Derna in 2015 .
The U.N. Support Mission in Libya said last week that fighting has killed at least 17 civilians, including two children, and wounded 22 others in Derna since May 16 .
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