Libya shoots down UAE drone targeting Misrata's airport

Libya's UN-recognised government says it has downed a UAE drone in the northwestern city of Misrata.

1 min read

19 August, 2019

Libya's government said the drone had been targeting Misrata's airport [Getty]

An armed drone belonging to the UAE was downed by Libyan government forces over the northwestern city of Misrata, Libya's government said on Monday.

The UN-recognised Government of National Accord (GNA) said the drone was one of two aircraft that had been targeting instrustructure and aircraft at Misrata airport.

Despite the UN recognising the GNA as Libya's official government, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the UAE have backed rogue general Khalifa Haftar - a Gaddafi-era military leader who leads the self-styled Libyan National Army (LNA).

Haftar's forces have been locked in open conflict with the GNA since April, when it launched an assault on Tripoli.

Fighting over the last four months has killed 1,093 people and wounded 5,752, according to the World Health Organization.

Some 120,000 have been displaced over the same period.

Libya has been mired in chaos since a NATO-backed uprising that toppled and killed dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.