Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Female Isis suicide bomber uses children as decoys to attack Libyan forces

Several women blew themselves up, killing four Libyan soldiers who had granted them safe passage to leave buildings under Isis control

Samuel Osborne
Sunday 04 December 2016 15:13 GMT
Comments
Libyan and UN-backed government forces in Ghiza Bahriya district in Sirte on Thursday
Libyan and UN-backed government forces in Ghiza Bahriya district in Sirte on Thursday (Reuters)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A female Isis fighter used three young children as a decoy to approach Libyan forces before blowing herself up.

Several women blew themselves up on Friday, killing four Libyan soldiers who had granted them safe passage to leave buildings under Isis control, a spokesman for the government forces told Reuters.

Libyan forces, backed by US air strikes, are close to taking full control of the former Isis stronghold of Sirte after a campaign lasting more than six months.

But they are having difficulty dislodging Isis from a final patch of land near the city's Mediterranean sea front, partly because of concerns about families or captives still held by the militants.

Smoke rises as fighters of Libyan forces allied with the UN-backed government advance against Isis holdouts in Ghiza Bahriya district in Sirte, Libya, 1 December, 2016
Smoke rises as fighters of Libyan forces allied with the UN-backed government advance against Isis holdouts in Ghiza Bahriya district in Sirte, Libya, 1 December, 2016 (Reuters)

During a pause in fighting on Friday, Reuters journalists reported seeing one woman escorting three young children through an alleyway, towards waiting Libyan forces.

Shortly after the children were driven away in an ambulance, there was a blast as the woman detonated her explosives, wounding around a dozen people.

Rida Issa, a spokesman for the Libyan forces, said two similar incidents, which he said were suicide attacks, had taken place as other women and children were leaving Isis-held ground.

Four members of the Libyan forces had been killed and 38 wounded, he added.

Several groups of families or hostages have been freed or escaped from Isis in Sirte in recent weeks, some of them refugees from sub-Saharan Africa who were captured by the group as they crossed Libya.

"The investigation will tell us whether these women were fighting with Daesh [Isis], or if they were captives," Mr Issa said of those who got out on Friday.

Isis took full control of Sirte in early 2015, imposing its ultra-hardline rule over the city in the following months.

Forces led by brigades from Misrata began a campaign to retake Sirte after Isis advanced towards their city in early May.

Additional reporting by Reuters

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in