Forces of Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar on Monday said they had taken control of the coastal city of Sirte from factions loyal to the Tripoli government.

Sirte, some 450 kilometers (280 miles) east of the capital Tripoli, had been held by forces allied with the UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) since 2016.

But on Monday, a spokesman for the rival faction, Haftar’s Libyan National Army (LNA), said the city had fallen to his fighters.

“Sirte has been totally liberated… from terrorist groups,” Ahmad al-Mesmari, spokesman for Haftar’s forces, said on television following an operation that lasted just hours.

Read more: yahoo