The new strategy of ISIS in Libya

The latest operation carried out by ISIS on Libyan territory in a series of armed attacks which seeks to prove its presence and restore its status among its supporters and fighters after the failures encountered along its spread in the Syrian and Iraqi territories and the loss of many of the strategic and tactical areas and ,most recently the center of Ramadi city .
The organization has announced on the 4th of January 2016 on the implementation of a comprehensive offensive process called the ” Battle of al-Qahtani “which was able to control of the region” Bin Jawad “of the Libyan city of Sirte of strategic importance to strengthening its presence and spread along the oil Crescent region, which the regulation sought to tighten its control over it .

The” Bin Jawad area is considered as one “of the important areas with tactical and economic dimension and is Located by 600 km from the city of Tripoli and about 145 km east of the city of Sirte and there are the largest oil ports in it which are used for the process of export of Libyan oil across the sea coast of the Mediterranean, and there are (4) berths prepared for cargo ships with 19 oil tanks with a capacity up to 6 million barrels of crude oil.
The importance of “Bin Jawad” area that it is situated on the Mediterranean coast between the city of “Ras Lanuf” to the east and the city of Sirte from the west, where the stronghold of the organization of the Islamic state in Libya, and it is one of the vast and important areas that posed the area of ” oilCrescent ” stretching from the cities of “Ajdabiya and Sirte and Sabratha.”

It is worth noting that Rawabet Center for Research And Studies had a futuristic vision of the coming events in Libya and the extent of the control ,the spread and the guide of the policy of confrontation of state regulation and targeting oil energy places and its quest to acquire and control over all the cities and important oil ports , in the article published on December 15th , 2015 entitled (ISIS in Libya: objectives and goals).
ISIS had managed of the identification and implementation of its policy in the way and the movement of its fighters and their quest for expansion towards the north of Africa, particularly the Arab countries, which lies off the south of Europe to form an extension of the objectives and seeking to carry out operations of confrontation within the European depth.

It is worth to be noted that the ISIS in its control over the area of the Libyan “Bin Jawad” to confirm the reality of its objectives in this important Arab country to strengthen its presence in areas characterized by its importance and its strategic location with all its precious metals and a large oil reserves which are of an important financial revenues and effective outlet economically which will help the organization to sustain the momentum of the fight and provide support and assistance to his fighters to continue in the confrontation and advance.

The importance of the “Bin Jawad” area in the new strategy of the organization:
1- ISIS is seeking of the incursion into Libyan territory and promote its spread and its presence and tighten control on important strategic dimension in its work and advance.
2. The guidance of organization for its fighters and its field leaders of the necessity for access to places that contain the oil wells and to tighten the control over it and the promotion of its economic resources and strengthen the sources of its financing.
3. To control over the Libyan coast, specifically the city of Sirte stronghold of the organization and along about 250 km and thus ISIS achieves widespread in the important and strategic area to help it on the export of crude oil freely and following the advanced methods and take advantage of its experience in the export of crude oil carried out in areas dominated by it in Iraq and Syria.
4. To control the “Bin Jawad region will enable ISIS to” reinforce its goals in the city, “Ajdabiya” which is an important axes in the “Crescent oil” area where most of the oil wells and gas that make up the source of power in Libya .
5. The accurate control of the “Ben Jawad area” means that the organization was able to identify its strategic and tactical goals in access to ” port of Sidra” oil noting that It is one of the important ports that are used in the process of the export of Libyan oil .
6. The organization used in the implementation of process of the control on “Bin Jawad area” an accurate military plan led by the Sudaness “Abu Maaz ” and “Tunisian Abohemem” and by a military convoy which is composed of a number of tanks, and military vehicles carrying Grad rockets and led by a number of Alangemasins with cars that have been blown up upon arrival to the target with themselves to open the way for the advance of the military convoy to control the “Bin Jawad,” District
7- The operation came to confirm the fact and intentions of the organization and his quest to take control over all energy areas in rich Arab countries of oil wealth as happened in Iraq, and is a reference to the international coalition which targeted a leading key in the Libyan city of “dirt” on 15th of November , 2015 by US raid that killed “Abu Nabil al-Anbari,” who is known as “Abu Mughira al Qahtani,” which the military operation is named by his name that targeted area “Bin Jawad.”
The organization will try and work with all seriousness to implement its strategic goals and plans to advance and crawl to the important Libyan cities and enhance its presence to constitute a major movement and base towards the Arab countries in North Africa.

Rawabet Research and Strategic Studies Center