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US to donate 12 Raven aircrafts to Lebanon
[Al Arabiya Latest] The United States set out to donate 12 Raven unmanned aircrafts to the Lebanese army as part of its military assistance program, the U.S. embassy announced Tuesday. The aircrafts would be provided "in the coming months," an embassy statement said.Lebanese army commander General Jean Kahwaji and Defence Minister Elias Murr agreed to the donation while visiting the United States earlier this year. The U.S. Defense Department will also train Lebanese army pilots on the Raven as "part of the comprehensive, robust U.S. military assistance program to Lebanon," the statement said. The Raven has electronic sensors providing immediate intelligence information and can perform remote reconnaissance and surveillance. U.S. military assistance to Lebanon totaled more than 410 million dollars since 2006 and includes aircrafts, tanks, artillery and training. The news comes right before Lebanon's parliamentary elections for the 128-seat legislature set to be held on June 7. Balloting is expected to be fiercely contested between Western-backed parties and a coalition led by the Hezbollah group. Posted by: Fred 2009-04-15 |
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