'Foreign parties' accused of fuelling Libya unrest

Sudan's foreign minister accused "foreign parties" of fuelling fighting in Libya as he opened a meeting of neighbouring countries Thursday aimed at ending more than three years of violence.

Libya has been gripped by lawlessness ever since the 2011 overthrow of Moamer Gaddafi and is awash with weapons left over from the NATO-backed uprising against his dictatorship. Rival governments and parliaments dispute power, with swathes of territory in the hands of powerful militia.

"Foreign parties have fuelled the Libyan crisis with more fighting and destruction," Foreign Minister Ali Karti said in a statement as the talks opened.

Counterparts from Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Niger and Tunisia attended the meeting, as well as Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi and an African Union envoy.

Libya was represented by the foreign minister of its Tobruk-based government, but no members of the rival administration based in the capital took part in the talks.

Karti said he hoped the Khartoum meeting could be coordinated with other initiatives to end the conflict.

On Wednesday, the United Nations announced that Special Representative Bernardino Leon will lead a new round of negotiations between the warring parties on December 9 at a venue that has yet to be decided.

The Pentagon has said that the United Arab Emirates carried out air strikes from Egypt in August in an unsuccessful bid to prevent the takeover of Tripoli by the militia loyal to the rival government.

In September, prime minister Abdullah al-Thani accused Sudan of backing his militia opponents after a plane packed with weapons landed in the southern oasis town of Kufra. 

Sudan denied the accusations and in October, Thani appeared to smooth over the spat on a visit to Khartoum, when he said the dispute was like a "passing summer cloud".

Seven people were killed, including five African migrant workers, as pro-government forces carried out air strikes Tuesday on the coastal city of Zuara in western Libya, an official said.

"There were three raids today (Tuesday)... targeting a food depot, a chemical goods factory and a small port," the Zuara official told AFP.

He said seven people were killed, including the five Africans, and 25 wounded, a toll that could not immediately be confirmed.

IS training camps in eastern Libya

Meanwhile, a top US general said Wednesday that the Islamic State (IS) group, which overran large areas of Iraq and Syria, has set up training camps in eastern Libya and the American military is closely monitoring.

But General David Rodriguez ruled out military action on the "nascent" camps in the immediate future. 

"They put training camps out there," Rodriguez, head of US Africa Command, told reporters, referring to IS.

He described the IS activity in eastern Libya as "very small and nascent."

"Around a couple hundred" militants were present at the camps and US forces would continue to track the area to see if the IS presence expanded, said Rodriguez.

When asked if the training camps in Libya were a potential target for American forces, Rodriguez said: "No, not right now."

The IS group "has begun its efforts over in the east out there to introduce some people over there," he said.

"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."

The four-star general said it appeared the IS militants in Libya were not volunteers coming from outside the country but militia members who had shifted their loyalty to the militant group.

The United States and key allies said on Wednesday they were ready to take further steps to protect Libya, expressing "grave concern" at the country's failure to end its civil strife.

The statement did not give any details of what action they might take.

Experts have warned that the IS group has gained a foothold in the eastern town of Derna, exploiting the chaos that has engulfed the North African state.

Analysts say a number of factions in Derna have pledged loyalty to the IS group, but it remains unclear how much support they enjoy.