Jihadists pledging allegiance to ISIL have seized al-Mabrook oil field, one of the largest oilfields in Libya. The oilfield is situated south of Sirte, a region swarming with Ansar al-Sharia jihadists who are actively fighting both the government troops and rival rebel groups. More than thirteen people were killed – including 2 Ghanaians, 3 Filipinos and 8 Libyans – and several others are missing after the jihadists stormed the oilfield on Tuesday night. ISIL claimed responsibility for the attack and congratulated its Libyan brothers for capturing the oilfield.
ISIL has led a brutal offensive against the secular regimes of Syria and Iraq; and it has gained considerable resources especially after its capture of Mosul and the Syrian oil fields. ISIL seeks to establish a trans-continental caliphate ruled by its version of Sharia law; and it has conducted activities to ensure its actualization. ISIL has courted and co-opted more than 30 Islamist militant groups in Algeria, Egypt and Libya. About 20 North African Islamist militias have joined ISIL and are operating under its tutelage and suzerainty. Intelligence sources have warned that the West’s ambivalence to ISIL expansion into Libya risks destabilizing the entire Maghreb region.
The current strategy adopted by ISIL for its North African operations has prioritized on capturing oilfields in order to ensure financial self-sufficiency for its North African affiliates. ISIL hopes that such financial stability will enable its affiliates to plan and execute spectacular operations which will see them capture strategic territories besides decimating their armed rivals.
Ansar al-Sharia is a salafist jihadist militia group whose principal objective is to ensure strict sharia law is implemented across Libya. The group was created during the Libyan Civil War and it has conducted attacks against both American and Libyan targets including the 2012 Benghazi attack which killed the US ambassador to Libya, John Christopher Stevens and several other Americans.
