Moroccan F-16 warplane goes missing in Yemen

A Moroccan F-16 warplane taking part in a bombing campaign in Yemen led by Saudi Arabia has gone missing, the Moroccan Royal Armed Forces has said in a statement.

Morocco announced its backing of Saudi Arabia since the beginning of the military offensive in March, and has had F-16 warplanes stationed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Reuters news agency reported on Monday.
“One of the F-16s of the Royal Armed Force made at the disposal of the coalition led by Saudi Arabia to restore the legitimacy in Yemen went missing on Sunday at 6pm local time,” FAR’s statement carried by the Moroccan state news agency MAP said.

The pilot of a second jet in the same squadron could not see if the pilot had ejected, it said. An investigation is under way, it added.

Backed by the United States, the coalition has been conducting air raids against the Houthi fighters since March 26 nearly a month after the rebels toppled the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

Hadi, who was backed by the West, fled to Saudi Arabia in February and requested the regional allies for intervention to oust the Houthis, who have taken control of the country with the help from forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh.