Air strikes on Libya’s commercial port in Benghazi on 24 September have been claimed by Operation Dignity, a coalition of army, air force and militia units led by retired general Khalifa Haftar.

Speaking after the attack, Saqer al-Jouroushi, head of Haftar’s air defense unit, told Reuters a coalition of Islamist fighters, Majlis al-Shura, was using the port to bring in supplies and weapons.

“We warned the port manager that we will not allow ships to dock to supply Majlis al-Shura with weapons,” said Jouroushi.

Haftar is currently battling Libya’s Islamist forces in operations he describes as a “war on terror”.

The retired general has said in the past that he supports the elected government, the House of Representatives, although he does not take orders from the legislature.

The House of Representatives is currently based in the small eastern city of Tobruk, while a rival parliament, the General National Congress (GNC), holds sway in Tripoli.

The GNC is backed by Libya Dawn, a powerful Islamist-led coalition that overran the capital in August.

Airstrikes carried out on Islamist militias near Tripoli in August were carried out by the UAE with the assistance of Egypt, according to US officials.