In an article for The Arab Weekly, Jason Pack argues that US foreign policy has failed to fully engage or understand the complexities of the Libyan political and military landscape or address why ISIS has been so successful in seizing territory in Libya. He concludes that:
Consequently, if the United States wants to truly address the threat posed by a powerful jihadist group with free rein over large parts of oil-rich, smuggling-rich, weapons-rich North Africa, then US policy efforts must be directed towards creating and supporting a long-term sustainable political solution in Libya.
Without political unity and stability, Libya’s economy will crumble, conflict will spread and the state will be powerless to prevent the country’s unravelling. In this scenario, ISIS and like-minded groups will continue to disrupt the stability and security of Libya and surrounding countries and the new US administration will have no weapons in its arsenal to prevent it.
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