By Libya Herald reporters.
Tripoli, 22 February 2015:
It is being reported that there was an attack on Derna last night by helicopter . . .[restrict]gunships. It is unclear what IS targets were assaulted by several aircraft.
The fact that the strikes went in under cover of darkness suggests a degree of night vision capability that is not normally enjoyed by the Libyan Air Force.
The Egyptian Air Force bombed Derna twice, hours after the beheading of 20 Egyptian nationals on a Sirte beach. Reports of further Egyptian attacks have been denied in Cairo, though after the first raids, Egyptian president Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said that these were “only the beginning”.
IS is believed to have been responsible for a Grad rocket attack on Beida’s Labraq airport on Saturday. One of the six missiles fired slightly damaged the edge of the runway but the airport has remained operational. Sources have claimed that the Libyan Air Force used Labraq to launch a raid on Derna hours after Friday’s triple suicide bombing in Guba. [/restrict]
