File image.
A Moroccan combat drone was spotted flying over the disputed region of Western Sahara a few days only after a strike that killed three Algerian truckers.
Local activists shared a photo of the drone, identified as a Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2, on November 5. The drone appeared to be armed with two munitions, most likely MAM-L laser-guided small-diameter bombs which are made by Turkey’s ROKETSAN.
Breaking ⚡️🇲🇦
Amid growing tensions between #Morocco and #Algeria following a fatal incident on the border of the two countries, Morocco has deployed its Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2 attack UAVs.#Turkey #BayraktarTB2 #GameOfDrones #UCAV @jesusfroman
Via @new_militarycolumnist pic.twitter.com/XniuXTrLLM— Darko Todorovski (@DarikMk) November 5, 2021
Just two days earlier, Algeria officially held Morocco responsible for the strike that claimed the lives of three of its citizens on November 1. In a statement, the Algerian Presidency described the unpresented incident as a “cowardly murder with sophisticated weaponry,” and vowed to respond.
Algerian sources said that the strike was carried out by a combat drone of the Royal Moroccan Air Force. The drone allegedly took off from an air base near the Moroccan-controlled city of Samara in the Western Sahara.
The deadly strikes was reportedly delivered by a Bayraktar TB2 combat drone. Morocco ordered 13 drones of this type from Turkey earlier this year. The first batch was delivered in September.
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Morocco denies any involvement in the incident. An official from the Kingdom claimed that the Algerian trucks were struck by landmines while moving weapons from Algeria to the Polisario Front in the Western Sahara.
Algeria, who cut all ties with Morocco in October, will not likely let the incident go unpunished. The Algerian military may respond by shooting down Moroccan drones over Western Sahara using its arsenal of advanced air-defense systems, including the Russian-made S-300PMU2.
