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According to AFRICOM, at least 14 MiG-29s and several Su-24 fighter jets were flown to Libya through Syria in May, Reuters reports.
AFRICOM said in a statement released Thursday that it had evidence that Russian fighters had originated from the Juffra military aviation base in central Libya and that the MiG fighter had been photographed near the city of Sirto.
Sirt and YouFra are on the border between the west controlled by the loyal forces of the National Cohesion Government (NSR) and the Libyan National Army (LNA), controlled by General Khalifa Haftar.
The LNA has withdrawn from the west of the country in recent weeks, but the front line still remains in Sirtu and Dzufra.
According to AFRICOM, Russian fighter jets support private military companies that depend on Russian funding.
“There is concern that these Russian fighters are being led by inexperienced private mercenaries who do not comply with international law, are not bound by traditional laws of armed conflict,” said Bradford Gering, director of operations for AFRICOM.
“Russia continues to maintain a strategic position on NATO’s southern flank, which affects the innocent Libyan people,” he said.
In oil-rich Libya, the crisis began in 2011 with the overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Since then, various factions have been fighting for power in the country.
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