Libyan rebels allied with terrorist groups stole millions of dollars in œhighly sensitive” American military equipment during raids on a US Special Forces base outside of Tripoli last summer, according to a report.
The theft is far worse than previously thought, Fox News reports, citing anonymous sources in the State Department and military.
The equipment, as Fox previously reported, was used by US Special Forces for training courses funded by the Pentagon.
The 12-man training team running the base was assigned to hunt down those responsible for the September 11, 2012 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi which killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans, and to train Libyan government forces in military tactics and weapons use.
The training team has been pulled, partly in response to the overnight raids last August.
Lost in the raids were dozens of M4 rifles, night-vision technology and laser-targeting devices that can only be seen with night-vision equipment.
23 Ground Mobility Vehicles, heavily armored Humvees with GPS navigation systems and weapons mounts for grenade launchers, are also missing.
œIt™s not just equipment… It™s the capability,” one source told Fox. œYou are giving these dangerous groups the capability that only a few nations are capable of… All these militias are tied to terrorist organizations.”
US Special Forces were not present to defend the camp during the raids as they were sleeping at a nearby villa doubling as a safehouse.
On top of that, American forces did not dismantle the training camp before their departure last month, and the base is now reportedly being used by an anti-government militia to stockpile weapons.
HJ/HJ
Copyright: Press TV