Saturday, March 19, 2011, by order of the President, the Chief of Defence Staff launched Operation Harmattan, name of the French participation in international military engagement for air operations to protect the Lybian people from attacks by Colonel Gaddafi's forces.
Early in the afternoon, France has implemented a no-fly zone in the critical region of Benghazi, in accordance with United Nations Security Council resolution 1973 and in coordination with its partners, including the United Kingdom, the United States of America and the league of Arab States.
From 1:30 pm today, French Air Force fighters have been engaged over Libya. Their perform air defence missions to enforce the no-fly zone in the Benghazi area and prevent Colonel Gaddafi's aircraft from flying. They also perform strikes on the ground on identified military targets which are a threat for the civilian population.
Achieving these tasks also requires reconnaissance, air traffic control and detection assets, as well as refuelling and supply means.
A total of twenty aircraft are engaged today (8 Rafale, 2 Mirage 2000-5, 2 Mirage 2000 D, 6 C 135 tanker aircraft and one E3F AWACS), as well as two anti-air and air defence destroyers (French Navy ships Jean Bart and Forbin) which are sailing off the coasts of Libya. These French military assets have been deployed in close coordination with our allies, giving time for the multinational coalition to set up.
Sources : EMA
Rights : Ministère de la Défense et des anciens combattants
