20 Libyan soldiers killed in clashes with Islamist militants

20 Libyan army soldiers were killed in clashes against Islamist militants in the eastern city of Derna since the clashes broke out at the weekend, a security source told Xinhua on Tuesday.

"Almost 18 army vehicles carrying at least 50 soldiers on Saturday began to attack several locations of the militants of so called Mujahedeen Council of Derna," Col. Saleh Juma, Director of the Security Directorate of Al-Gubba city, told Xinhua.

Juma said that the militants attacked the army unit from behind, killing 20 soldiers. A medical source of Al-Gubba field hospital confirmed the casualties.

Libya, a major oil producer in North Africa, has been witnessing a frayed political process after former leader Muammar Gaddafi was toppled during the 2011 political turmoil.

The country is now deadlocked in a dogfight between the pro-secular army and Islamist militants, which has caused a security vacuum for homegrown extremism to brew.
Source: XINHUA