Fearless soldiers spy on jihadi hotspot in Libya

The op saw small teams of three or four sent to areas west of jihadi haven Sirte.

Brigadier-General Mahmoud Zaghil, who runs military operations in the central region, said: "They came about six months ago, as a communications and assessment team, they came close to Sirte."

The military official also warned his forces are facing the vile extremists with ancient weaponry from Colonel Gaddafi's era.

Libya has been under a five-year arms embargo after Colonel Gaddafi was toppled in the Nato-backed revolt in 2011.

The arms embargo, enforced by the UN, has left the forces unequipped to defeat ISIS – who killed more than 30 people in Brussels on Tuesday.

Now the military official has asked the west to aid his forces, which are loyal to the rival government that controls Tripoli.

The call for aid comes as David Cameron last week was challenged over reports that Britain was about to send 1,000 troops to train Libyan forces.

The Prime Minister said: "If we have any plans for troop training or troop deployment in a conventional sense, we will of course come to the House."

It is believed ISIS - also known as Daesh – has some 5,000 fighters in Libya.

(dailystar.co.uk)