a member of Syria's Arab Shaytat tribe who has joined a Kurdish-led alliance fighting the Islamic State group in northern Syria
Fighter Abu Zeid (R), a member of Syria's Arab Shaytat tribe who has joined a Kurdish-led alliance fighting the Islamic State group in northern Syria, sits among others on January 27, 2019, in the Syrian village of Baghouz. - Near the front line in eastern Syria, Amer Khalifa plays with a sword he found. To 'avenge' his family, he has joined a Kurdish-led alliance fighting the Islamic State group. The 22-year-old is one of numerous members of the Shaytat tribe who have joined the fight to flush out the jihadists from a shrinking enclave near the Iraqi border.DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images [Representational Image]

Libyan security forces have arrested a senior Islamic State (IS) leader in the city of Sirte, said an official on conditions of anonymity.

Khalifa Barq was taken from his home by a special security force, the official of Sirte security department told Xinhua news agency on Friday.

"The operation was based on intelligence information about the presence of Barq in central Sirte. He is one of the founders of IS in Sirte who is wanted by the Attorney General," the official said of the arrest made on Thursday.

Sirte, located some 450 km from here, has witnessed months of fighting between forces allied with the UN-backed government and IS militants that ended in December 2016 with the government forces taking over the city.

The IS continues to remain a threat to national security, the government has said.