Sirte

With just 24 hours left in Obama's tenure, the U.S. president launched his final airstrike on ISIS after two B-2 bombers carried out airstrikes on two ISIS camps in Libya overnight, defense officials said Thursday, part of an operation targeting militants driven out last year from their coastal stronghold. The stealth bombers struck jihadis 45 kilometers southwest of Sirte, located halfway between Tripoli and Benghazi.

A map showing location of Sirte, Libya.

Submitted by Joao Peixe via OilPrice.com,

The Islamic State (ISIS) is taking on recruits faster than anyone can keep up with, and it’s heading towards Libya’s oil crescent, eyeing billions of barrels that a country at war with itself cannot protect - even with U.S. air strikes.

U.S. defense officials have told The Daily Beast that the Obama administration has turned down Pentagon plans to go after ISIS/Islamic State in Libya. The Islamic State is gaining ground in Libya and Sirte, the former dictator Muammar Gaddafi’s home city, is now the epicenter for the terror group in Libya and north Africa. The Daily Beast reports: In recent weeks, the U.S. military—led by its Africa and Special Operations Commands—have pushed for more airstrikes and the deployment of elite troops, particularly in the city of Sirte.