Tunisian President confirms US use of Tunisia to fly drones over Libya
The Tunisian President, Beji Caid Essebsi, confirmed that the US had been for some time flying surveillance drones along border with war-torn Libya.
In a TV interview late on Tuesday, Essebsi said the US had flown drones for reconaissance operations on the Tunisian-Libyan border.
“This is part of a military cooperation with the US as part of fighting terrorism in the region,” Essebsi said.
He added that 70 US officers were also training personnel in the Tunisian army, denying the presence of US airbases on Tunisian soil.
Media reports earlier said the US had used a military base in Tunisia to fly drones for monitoring Libyan border.
In a separate comment, the Tunisian Defense Minister, Farhat Horchani, said his country had received reconaissance drones from the US as part of a military cooperation between the two countries.
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