Rafale fighter jets belonging to France or Egypt bombed the al-Watiya airbase in Libya as a response to Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar’s visit to Libya.
France and Egypt are both against any involvement of Turkey in Libya. France called the presence of any Turkish-backed militias who tried to head towards Sirte as unacceptable and warned to intervene militarily in Libya.
The 4++ generation Rafale jets carried out an airstrike on al-Watiya airbase. As per reports, a squadron of fighter planes launched a series of airstrikes on al-Watiya base, where Turkey had deployed F-16 aircraft, Bayraktar TB2 and Anka-S drones, backed by a MIM-23 Hawk air defence system with its radars.
However, such countermeasures did not deter the airstrikes and these advanced fighter jets easily managed to dodge the air defence systems.
The jets either flown by French or Egyptian pilots also targeted air defence systems, fixed and mobile radar installations and Koral signal jamming system in Sungur, which the Ankara had deployed at al-Watiya base.
India is poised to receive six Rafale jets on 27 July 2020. India had placed an order of 36 Rafale jets from France to give its air force superior air dominance.