Egyptian warplanes hit arms convoy from Libya

Agence France Presse
In this still image taken from video provided by the Egyptian military, An Egyptian fighter jet takes off from an undisclosed location in Egypt to strike militant hideouts in the Libyan city of Darna on May 26, 2017. (Egyptian military via AP)

CAIRO: Egyptian warplanes struck a convoy of 12 vehicles about to be driven across the border from Libya carrying weapons and ammunition, the military said on Tuesday.
The military said in a statement that it had acted on “intelligence indicating a number of criminal elements had gathered to cross the border into Egypt using a number of four-wheel-drive vehicles.”
An official in the armed forces told AFP the vehicles had been on the move from Libya.
Air force units found “the hostile targets, confirmed their coordinates and dealt with them for more than 12 hours,” the military said, without specifying when the raids were carried out.
“The operation led to the targeting and destruction of 12 four-wheel-drive vehicles carrying quantities of weapons, ammunition, and explosive materials,” it added.
The official Facebook page of Egypt’s military spokesman published a video showing warplanes taking off on the mission, as well as footage from the air of vehicles being struck.
Libya has been wracked by chaos since the 2011 uprising that toppled and killed longtime dictator Muammar Qaddafi, with rival authorities and militias battling for control of the oil-rich country.
Egypt has repeatedly expressed concern over militants crossing into its territory from Libya to conduct attacks.
In a speech last month, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said setbacks by the Daesh group in Syria were driving its fighters to try to relocate to Libya and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula.
Last month, Egypt launched air strikes against “terror camps” in Libya in retaliation for a deadly attack on Coptic Christians in Egypt, saying the assailants had been trained there.