Al-Jufra airbase in central Libya. Via Google Earth
The Libyan National Army (LNA) announced on July 25 that its air-defense units had shot down a Turkish unmanned combat aerial combat vehicle (UCAV) near al-Jufra airbase in central Libya.
“The defenses of our forces shot down a Turkish drone of the terrorist militias that attempted to target our troops in al-Jafra,” the LNA media center said in a short press release.
Turkey is indeed operating Bayraktar TB2 UCAVs in Libya to support forces loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA). However, the LNA has not released any videos or photos confirming that a drone of this type was shot down.
Located in the heart of Libya, al-Jufra airbase is one of the main headquarters of the LNA. Last month, a Russian-made Pantsir-S1 air-defense system of the UAE military was spotted near the airbase.
If the LNA claims are true, there is a good chance that the Turkish UCAV was brought down with the UAE’s Pantsir-S1 system. This development is a useful example of the real face of the Libya proxy war.