Libyan Army denies receiving modern Russian warplanes

BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:40 P.M.) – The Libyan National Army (LNA) spokesman, Colonel Ahmed Al-Mismari, denied on Wednesday that the military had acquired modern fighters recently.

Al-Mismari said that old planes have been repaired by engineers and technicians of the armed forces and returned to service, stressing that they will enter the battles soon with full firepower.

In a direct speech, he affirmed that the relocation of his forces had caused great losses among the “reconciliation forces”.

Al-Mismari stressed that the Turkish intervention has become larger, and has become a dangerous escalation, explaining that they are ready to address this interference, as he indicated that swarms of Turkish planes are arriving in Misrata.

He pointed out that Al-Wefaq forces used civilians as human shields in the Ain Zara axis, south of the capital, Tripoli.

The U.S. military command in Africa “Africom”, has claimed that “Moscow has transported aircraft to Libya to support Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, commander of the Libyan National Army.”

Russia, in turn, has repeatedly denied accusations of involvement in the Libyan conflict, describing allegations of the presence of Russian mercenaries there as empty allegations, stressing that it stands with the peaceful settlement of the conflict in this country, and maintains contacts with the two conflicting parties.

Later, the Pentagon spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, said that at least 14 Russian-made warplanes might be in Libya.

Hoffman answered during a press conference a question in this regard, saying: “With regard to the number and types of aircraft, I do not have accurate data, but there is about 14 Su-24 and MiG-29 fighters at the moment. This is all the information I can share with you.”

The United States had previously claimed that Russia was facilitating the transfer of fighters from Syria to Libya, while the Russian side has repeatedly denied such statements, which Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov described as rumors.