Libyan forces advance against IS in Sirte, lose 10 troops

Libyan forces loyal to the UN-backed government say they have lost 10 troops in fighting with Islamic State militants in the remaining neighbourhoods they occupy in the coastal city of Sirte.

In a statement, they say today's fighting had also left 17 of their forces wounded, and that they had made advances in the area that left an undetermined number of casualties among IS forces.

Sirte is IS's final bastion in the country, and Libyan troops have been forcing the militants into ever-smaller bits of territory there, backed by US airstrikes. IS has often struck back with suicide attacks.

Libya descended into chaos following the 2011 ouster and killing of dictator Muammar Gadhafi, and has been split between rival parliaments and governments based in Tripoli and the country's east.