article_snippet.sent: Roughly 300 fighters linked to al Qaeda's North African arm AQIM, including a splinter group formed by veteran Islamist commander Mokhtar Belmokhtar, were believed to have operating in southern Libya, a key point on smuggling and trafficking routes across the sparsely populated region from Southern Libya to Mauritania.
article_snippet.sent: Roughly 300 fighters linked to al Qaeda's North African arm AQIM, including a splinter group formed by veteran Islamist commander Mokhtar Belmokhtarveteran Islamist commander Mokhtar Belmokhtar, were believed to have operating in southern Libya .