Arab nations strike in Libya surprising US

Cairo: Egypt and the United Arab Emirates have secretly launched airstrikes twice in the last seven days against Islamist-allied militias, battling for control of Tripoli, Libya, four senior American officials said.

The United States, the officials said, was caught by surprise: Egypt and the Emirates, both close allies and military partners, acted without informing Washington, leaving the Obama administration on the sidelines. Egyptian officials explicitly denied to American diplomats that their military played any role in the operation, the officials said, in what appeared a new blow to already strained relations between Washington and Cairo.