Fighters from the so-called Islamic State (Isis) group have clashed with guards near Libya’s Sidra oil port east of its Sirte stronghold, reports say.
It is not clear how close the fighting is to the port, but Isis says it now controls Bin Jawad, 30km (19 miles) west of Sidra on the road from Sirte.
In December, France said IS was aiming to control Libya’s oil wells.
IS, which has been operating in Libya for about a year, failed to take Sidra in an attack last October.
Details of the attack are sketchy but the AFP news agency is quoting an army official saying that the Isis militants were pushed back.
Two members of the Libyan faction known as the Petrol Facilities Guard, which is defending Sidra, were reportedly killed.
Libyan news website Libya’s Channel is tweeting that seven people have been killed in all, including four Isis members and one civilian.
Libya has descended into chaos since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.
In December, Libya’s rival politicians signed a UN-brokered deal to form a unity government, but that has not yet been implemented.
AFP
