1,000 troops could be sent to Libya to help defeat Islamic State

UP to 1,000 British soldiers could be deployed to Libya to help wipe out Islamic State jihadis.

Military chiefs are examining plans to send troops and special forces to the country to help train Libyan security forces to fight the fanatics, who are trying to take over the region.

The troops, who would have an on- combat role, could also help track down people-traffickers exploiting mi grants who want to make the perilous crossing to Europe.

Details of the mission came as Libya’s main opposing factions yesterday signed a UN-brokered deal to form a national united government, in a move that the West hopes will aid the fight against IS.

Libya has been in chaos since the fall of Colonel Gaddafi four years ago, with two rival governments – a self-declared one in Tripoli and an internationally recognised one in the east.

The power vacuum has allowed IS to expand its so-called ‘caliphate’ – a state governed by strict Islamic law – from Syria and Iraq to parts of Libya.

Following yesterday’s agreement, which was signed in Morocco, Britain and other nations, thought to include the US and France, expect to be asked for assistance by the new Libyan administration.

Under plans to support the country, which the UK and Italy have been work- ing on with the EU and the UN, British soldiers would contribute to a 6,000-strong Italian-led mission to train local troops.

Special forces could be sent to head up operations to track down leaders of peopletrafficking gangs. The SAS soldiers could also be armed to take out IS targets.

The deployment would mean boots on the ground in an area where six SAS soldiers were captured during an operation in 2011, months before Gaddafi’s death.

Prime Minister David Cameron said the agreement was ‘an important step forward’, adding: ‘The UK is firmly committed to securing a stable and prosperous future for Libya ... This agreement means the international community can now engage with one unified, representative government in Libya in the fight against Daesh [IS] and the migrant traffickers.’

However, in a sign of how entrenched the divisions are, factions in both camps rejected the deal.

Libya has increasingly become a ‘retreat zone’ for IS militants trying to avoid air strikes in Syria and Iraq, a report presented to the UN revealed this month. Some 2,000 to 3,000 IS fighters are thought to have travelled to the war-torn country to create a strategic hub for recruits unable to reach IS in its Syrian heartland.

A Downing Street spokesman said the Government has made clear it would support a new administration in Libya, but that if any troops were sent they would not be in a combat role.