UAE Implicated In Lethal Drone Strikes In Tigray
Posted: 05 Jan 2022, 10:34
By Stijn Mitzer and Joost Oliemans
Just a month after the deployment of six Emirati Wing Loong I unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) and their operators to Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates is already implicated in a series of airstrikes on civilian infrastructure in the town of Alamata in the Tigray Region. The strikes resulted in the deaths of 42 civilians and the wounding of at least 150 as munitions struck the town's hospital and market. [1] [2] The majority of deaths are believed to have resulted from unguided bombs dropped by the Ethiopian Air Force's (ETAF) Su-27 fighter aircraft, which Ethiopia has repurposed as makeshift bombers armed with dumb bombs and cluster munitions. [3]
Careful analysis of the stricken areas in Alamata however also reveals the remains of a Chinese-made Blue Arrow 7 air-to-ground missile (AGM), which is the standard type of armament equipping Emirati Wing Loong UCAVs. Although the Ethiopian Air Force similarly operates the Wing Loong I, these are only known to be armed with TL-2 AGMs, a first batch of which was acquired in early November 2021. [4] Ethiopia initially sought to operate its Wing Loong Is as reconnaissance UAVs to locate targets for Su-27 fighter aircraft equipped with unguided bombs, only later deploying them as actual strike platforms armed with up to four guided munitions. [5]
Although it's impossible to conclusively link the remains of the Blue Arrow 7 munition to civilian deaths (at least until more information becomes available), it is known that the UAE has frequently struck civilian infrastructure as part of its drone campaigns over Yemen and Libya. In 2020 Amnesty International urged the United States to stop drone sales to UAE over the use of armed drones by the UAE to ''target civilian homes and health facilities, including field hospitals and ambulances''. [6] [7] [8] Also in 2020, an Emirati Wing Loong II carried out a lethal drone strike that killed 26 unarmed cadets at a military academy in Tripoli, Libya. [9]
Continue reading https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/01/u ... rikes.html
Just a month after the deployment of six Emirati Wing Loong I unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) and their operators to Ethiopia, the United Arab Emirates is already implicated in a series of airstrikes on civilian infrastructure in the town of Alamata in the Tigray Region. The strikes resulted in the deaths of 42 civilians and the wounding of at least 150 as munitions struck the town's hospital and market. [1] [2] The majority of deaths are believed to have resulted from unguided bombs dropped by the Ethiopian Air Force's (ETAF) Su-27 fighter aircraft, which Ethiopia has repurposed as makeshift bombers armed with dumb bombs and cluster munitions. [3]
Careful analysis of the stricken areas in Alamata however also reveals the remains of a Chinese-made Blue Arrow 7 air-to-ground missile (AGM), which is the standard type of armament equipping Emirati Wing Loong UCAVs. Although the Ethiopian Air Force similarly operates the Wing Loong I, these are only known to be armed with TL-2 AGMs, a first batch of which was acquired in early November 2021. [4] Ethiopia initially sought to operate its Wing Loong Is as reconnaissance UAVs to locate targets for Su-27 fighter aircraft equipped with unguided bombs, only later deploying them as actual strike platforms armed with up to four guided munitions. [5]
Although it's impossible to conclusively link the remains of the Blue Arrow 7 munition to civilian deaths (at least until more information becomes available), it is known that the UAE has frequently struck civilian infrastructure as part of its drone campaigns over Yemen and Libya. In 2020 Amnesty International urged the United States to stop drone sales to UAE over the use of armed drones by the UAE to ''target civilian homes and health facilities, including field hospitals and ambulances''. [6] [7] [8] Also in 2020, an Emirati Wing Loong II carried out a lethal drone strike that killed 26 unarmed cadets at a military academy in Tripoli, Libya. [9]
Continue reading https://www.oryxspioenkop.com/2022/01/u ... rikes.html