From August to December of 2016, MQ-9 Reaper aircrews supported the Government of National Accord and other coalition partners to remove Islamic State of Iraq and Syria fighters from Sirte, Libya. On Dec. 19, 2016, Sirte was declared liberated from ISIS.
Washington Times: AFRICOM demands return of US drone shot down by Russian air defenses over Libya
The U.S. military believes one of its drones lost near Libya’s capital Tripoli on Nov. 21 was brought down by Russian air defenses, according U.S. Africa Command.
Air Force Col. Christopher Karns, a spokesman for AFRICOM , told Military Times that the U.S. believes the remotely piloted aircraft may have been brought down by Russian mercenaries or troops with Khalifa Hifter’s Libyan National Army operating a Russian air defense system.
The U.S. is working various diplomatic channels as it seeks return of the downed drone, Karns said.
The commander of AFRICOM, U.S. Army General Stephen Townsend told Reuters that he believes the individuals who shot down the drone “didn’t know it was a U.S. remotely piloted aircraft when they fired on it.”
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WNU Editor: If AFRICOM does get its drone back, and it is a big maybe, it will be in pieces with the critical parts missing.
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