Al-Jazeera correspondent in Tripoli, citing field sources, said that the forces of retired Major General Khalifa Haftar took control of large parts of the city of Sirt, the birthplace of the late Libyan Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, which was under full control by the Al-Wefaq government in Tripoli.

The correspondent stated that Haftar forces also took control of the Qardabiya airbase and a number of military sites south of Sirte.

The same sources said that Haftar forces stormed the city from its south and east with the support of local residents from the stream, while the Al-Wefaq government forces are stationed west of Sirte, awaiting the arrival of reinforcements from the city of Misrata, after engaging in clashes with Haftar's forces.

Ahmed Al-Mesmari, a spokesman for Haftar's forces, confirmed in a press conference that the attack on Sirte was launched from five land and sea axes, in addition to securing air support for the operation.

On the other hand, a protection and insurance force Sirte announced on its official Facebook page that it was "dealing with terrorist militias" belonging to Haftar, noting that "Janjawid mercenaries and the Chadian opposition" were participating in the fighting.

The French Press Agency quoted a military source in the Al-Wefaq government as saying that Haftar's control of the city was carried out by "betraying" one of the military formations in the city.

The source explained - who preferred not to be named - that "the battalion (604 infantrymen) betrayed the forces of the reconciliation government in Sirte, and they coincided with the movement of Haftar forces towards the city to facilitate its entry without a fight", and indicated that "the betrayal of our forces will be answered militarily in Good time. "

Control of Sirte - which is located in the middle of the Libyan coast on the Mediterranean - would give Haftar a strategic advantage.

The progress of Haftar's forces came as Turkey prepared to send military advisers and experts to Libya to help strengthen the position of the national reconciliation government.

Reuters news agency quoted United Nations experts and diplomats that Haftar forces had received material and military aid from countries, including the UAE, Jordan and Egypt.

The past few weeks have witnessed an escalation in fighting, bombing and air strikes near the capital Tripoli, and a military academy in Tripoli was bombed on Saturday evening, killing at least 30 people, a day after the only airport operating in the city was closed due to bombing and missile fire.

The UN envoy to Libya, Ghassan Salameh, accused a country of "supporting" the forces of Haftar (unnamed) by bombing the military college, while the internationally-recognized reconciliation government on Sunday accused the UAE of being involved in the bombing of the military college.