World powers say they are to arm Libyan government to fight IS

World powers, including the US have said that they are ready to arm Libya's UN-backed unity government, to help it fight the so-called Islamic State (IS) group.

Libya is currently trying to obtain an exemption from a United Nations weapons embargo to the country. The country’s government warned last month, that IS could seize most of the country if it was not halted soon.

Speaking in Vienna following a meeting with over 20 countries, US Secretary of State John Kerry said world powers would back Libya in seeking exemption from the embargo, and he added that IS was a "new threat" to Libya, making it "imperative" to try and stop them.

"The GNA [Government of National Accord] is the only entity that can unify the country. It is the only way to ensure that vital institutions... fall under representative and acknowledged authority. It is the only way to generate the cohesion necessary to defeat Daesh [IS]," he said.

Kerry said support for arming the government was part of a package of measures agreed at the meeting, which include accelerating non-military aid to Libya.

Libya has been in havoc since Nato-backed forces overthrew long-time ruler Col Muammar Gaddafi in October 2011, and it had two rival governments competing for power, until recently, with hundreds of militias including some allied to IS still believed to be spread throughout the country.