BENGHAZI: Libyan forces advanced into several neighborhoods in Derna on Monday after stepping up a military campaign to oust rivals from the eastern city, a spokesman and residents said.
The advance followed heavy shelling and air strikes in recent weeks as the Libyan National Army (LNA), an eastern-based force loyal to Khalifa Haftar, launched a ground campaign around Derna.
The LNA has long encircled the city of 125,000, the last in eastern Libya to elude its control. It is held by the Derna Protection Forces, formerly known as the “Derna Mujahideen Shoura Council,” a coalition of extremists and other anti-Haftar combatants.
Early on Monday, LNA forces entered Derna from both the eastern and western coastal roads and took control of the Shiha and Bab Tobruk districts, advancing to within one kilometer of the port, one of the operation’s commanders, Salem Al-Rafadi, told Reuters.
Photos shared by a resident appeared to show soldiers and military vehicles advancing along largely deserted streets.
Haftar says his men are fighting to rid Derna, a city around 266 km (165 miles) from the border with Egypt, of “terrorists.” Opponents accuse him of subjecting the city to urban warfare to expand his power after destroying parts of Benghazi in a similar campaign.
In a speech broadcast on the LNA’s social media pages on Monday, Haftar announced the “second phase of the liberation of Derna.”
“In good news for all honorable Libyans, the hour of victory is approaching, and the announcement of the city of Derna rid of terrorism, secure and at ease under the protection of the armed forces and security units,” Haftar said.
The fighting in Derna, which escalated again last week, encroached into densely populated areas, and since May 16 at least 17 civilians including two children have been killed. Among them were seven people who died in an explosion as they tried to leave Derna on May 30, the UN said on Friday.
The LNA opposes an internationally recognized government in Tripoli, and is linked instead to a government and parliament based in the east.
Its surge in Derna overshadowed high-level talks in Paris last week that tried to chart a way out of Libya’s turmoil and set a goal of holding elections in December.
Libyan forces advance into eastern city of Derna
Libyan forces advance into eastern city of Derna
US condemns RSF drone attack on World Food Programme convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan
- Denise Brown, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, also expresses concern over the drone attack
WASHINGTON: The US has condemned a drone attack by Rapid Support Forces on an aid convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan state that killed one person and injured three others.
“The United States condemns the recent drone attack on a World Food Program convoy in North Kordofan transporting food to famine-stricken people which killed one and wounded many others,” US Senior Adviser for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos wrote on X.
“Destroying food intended for people in need and killing humanitarian workers is sickening,” the US envoy wrote.
“The Trump Administration has zero tolerance for this destruction of life and of U.S.-funded assistance; we demand accountability and extend our condolences to all those affected by these inexcusable events and terrible war,” he added.
The Sudan Doctors Network said the convoy was struck by RSF drones in the Allah Karim area as it headed toward displaced people in El-Obeid, the state capital, Anadolu Agency reported.
The network described the attack as a “clear violation of international humanitarian law,” warning that it undermines efforts to deliver life-saving aid to civilians amid worsening humanitarian conditions across the country.
There was no immediate comment from the rebel group.
The United States condemns the recent drone attack on a World Food Program convoy in North Kordofan transporting food to famine-stricken people which killed one and wounded many others. This follows an attack earlier this week in Blue Nile state that injured a @WFP staff member.…
— U.S. Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs (@US_SrAdvisorAF) February 6, 2026
Denise Brown, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, in a statement also expressed concern over the drone attack which hit the aid trucks in North Kordofan.
“I am deeply concerned by a drone attack earlier today on trucks contracted by the World Food Programme (WFP) in North Kordofan, the aftermath of which I came across a few hours later, as I left the state capital, El Obeid.”
“The trucks were en route from Kosti to deliver life-saving food assistance to displaced families near El Obeid when they were struck, tragically killing at least one individual and injuring many more. The trucks caught fire, destroying food commodities intended for life-saving humanitarian response.”
Brown added that “Humanitarian personnel, assets and supplies must be protected at all times. Attacks on aid operations undermine efforts to reach people facing hunger and displacement.”
“Safe and unimpeded humanitarian access remains critical to ensure assistance reaches the most vulnerable people across Sudan.”
Since April 2023, the conflict between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary forces has killed tens of thousands, displaced 11 million and which the UN has described as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
An alert issued by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), confirmed famine conditions in El-Fasher and Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan, about 800 kilometers to the east.
The IPC said that 20 more areas in Sudan’s Darfur and neighboring Kordofan were at risk of famine.
Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states in the western Darfur region, except for parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army holds most areas of the remaining 13 states across the south, north, east and center of the country, including the capital, Khartoum.
The conflict between the army and the RSF, which erupted in April 2023, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions.
