Libyan forces clear Islamic State from Sirte

Libyan forces backed by US air strikes have finished clearing the final district of the former Islamic State stronghold of Sirte in which the jihadist group had been holding out, a spokesman for the forces said.

A Reuters witness said fighting had ended in Sirte's Ghiza Bahriya area, where Islamic State had been dug in for weeks at the end of a battle for the city that began in May.

Spokesman Rida Issa said forces led by brigades from Misrata had "secured all the buildings and the streets" in Ghiza Bahriya, though this did not mean the end of the Misrata-led operation. "We still need to secure the area around Sirte," he said.

Libyan and Western officials say some Islamic State fighters escaped from Sirte before the battle or in its early stages. They fear an insurgent campaign from outside the city and there have been attacks in outlying areas.

Islamic State took over Sirte in early 2015, turning it into their most important base outside the Middle East and moving large numbers of foreign fighters into the city.

The militant group imposed its ultra-hardline rule on Sirte's residents, extending its control along about 250 km (155 miles) of Libya's Mediterranean coastline.

The...