The US military has accused Russia of deploying warplanes to Libya in support of Russian-backed mercenaries allegedly fighting for Khalifa Haftar, the renegade general commanding the Libyan National Army (LNA).
US Africa Command released photos it says show Russian fighter jets, which had travelled from Russia and transited in Syria, deploying to Libya, where they were repainted to disguise their origins.
Military intelligence tracked the "fourth generation jet fighters", presumably by satellite, as they flew to Libya, according to US Africa Command's chief Stephen Townsend.
A satellite image released by the US military purportedly shows a Russian Mikoyan MiG-29 at the al-Jufra airbase in northern Libya.
The fighter jets will be used to support an air offensive by Haftar, piloted by Russian mercenaries, flying Russian-supplied aircraft, according to the US military.
