Libya Turns The Tide

Militias Finally Take on ISIS in the Chaos of North Africa.

In February 2011, the people of Libya responded to a wave of revolt spreading through the Arab world. After Tunisians and Egyptians forced their own autocratic leaders from power, Libyans marched to the streets to take on Muammar Gaddafi, the brutal dictator who had ruled Libya for decades. The regime responded with force, and revolution quickly turned to civil war. With the help of NATO airpower, Libya’s rebels were able to topple Gaddafi, who was killed in October 2011–allowing Libya to launch a fragile experiment with democracy.

That experiment has yielded chaos. The civil war devastated Libya’s already weak institutions, and a patchwork of militias began battling over the spoils. By 2014, the country was split between two rival governments–opening the door for ISIS to move in. The jihadists established a foothold in Libya’s power vacuum in 2014, eventually taking control of the coastal city of Sirt, Gaddafi’s birthplace, in 2015. Experts feared that even with ISIS losing ground in its home territories in Syria and Iraq, it would still be able to thrive in the turmoil of Libya.

That’s why the reports that Libyan militias captured ISIS headquarters in Sirt on Aug. 10 are so important. The offensive, led by militias from the nearby city of Misratah, represents a victory over ISIS and, hopefully, takes Libya a step back from the brink of collapse. If they succeed in retaking the whole city, the militias could effectively eliminate ISIS’s most important colony.

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