The British government has said for the first time that members of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group – widely suspected to be behind the Manchester bombing – were likely among those they supported in Libya to topple Muammar Gaddafi.
In a written answer to a parliamentary question the British government has admitted that the British-sponsored jihadist militias in Libya in 2011 ‘likely' included members of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG). The question was tabled by Labour MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle, who asked whether the government was in communication with members of LIFG during the effort to bring down Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
Minister of State for the Middle East at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Alistair Burt responded on April 3, writing, “During the Libyan conflict in 2011 the British Government was in communication with a wide range of Libyans involved in the conflict against the Qaddafi regime forces. It is likely that this included former members of Libyan Islamic Fighting Group.”
The Libyan Islamic Fighting Group
It had long been suspected that LIFG members were among those that the British government funnelled into Libya for training and deployment against Gaddafi. In the 1990s LIFG were primarily anti-Gaddafi activists, though one of their members, Anas Al-Liby, scouted targets for al-Qaeda in what became the embassy bombings plot.
In 1996 an MI6 intelligence officer…
