ISIS has set up training camps in Libya, a top U.S. general said Wednesday. Army Gen. David Rodriguez described the camps as "small and very nascent," with an estimated "couple of hundred" of ISIS-affiliated personnel. Speaking at a Pentagon briefing, Rodriguez said he had not recommended deploying American air power or troops to go after the camps in the chaotic North African country.
"[ISIS] has begun its efforts over in the east [of Libya] to introduce some people over there," said Rodriguez, who is the head of U.S. Africa Command. "But we'll have to just continue to monitor and watch that carefully in the future to see what happens or whether it grows on unabated." Asked about the nature of the camps, he told reporters it was "mainly about people coming for training and logistics support" but "as far as a huge command-and-control network, I've not seen that." He said it was not clear whether the fighters were foreign-born or local recruits.
ISIS has seized territory that is home to millions of people in Iraq and Syria — but it has garnered praise and support from groups as far away as Pakistan to Nigeria. Libya has been in a state of chaos since the overthrow of Moammar Gadhafi in 2011.
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