Ansar Al-Sharia has angrily denied a claim by IS that the home-grown Libyan terrorist group has sworn allegiance to its leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.

In a rambling statement that appeared on its social media site Ansar blamed members in Sirte for who “numbered no more than the fingers on one hand” for the error.

“If you mean the brothers in Sirte [who allied with IS], you should know that they were not from the Ansar Al-Sharia leadership, and they were not even in alliance with Ansar”.

Interestingly the statement also went on to deny that Ansar had any kind of relationship with the Tripoli-based government of “apostates ”.  Ansar insisted that it had never received assistance from Libya Dawn and that there was no alliance between between the two groups.

The statement also sought to clear up Ansar’s links with the Benghazi Revolutionaries’ Shoura Council with which it was reported in August, there had been a serious split leading to the drowning on a BRSC commander Sulaimon Buazza..

Ansar said of its relations with the “former revolutionaries” of the BRSC that it was in favour of “taking a unifying stance against the enemy of religion […] and, thank God, they were on the same path with us, killing the enemy in God’s name and nothing else”.

Libya Herald reporters.

https://www.libyaherald.com/2015/09/28/ansar-al-sharia-denies-links-to-e...