Mitiga.

The hiring of mercenaries would break UN resolutions on arms control in Libya.

Clashes between the LNA and militias loyal to the Government of National Accord (GNA) erupted in mid-April with the former aiming to seize control of towns close to Libya's northern coast.

This is not the first time that Misrata, which is controlled by pro-GNA militias, has used mercenary services for the piloting and maintenance of its aircraft fleet.

General Mohammed Rajab (R) changes the Gaddafi-era Libyan flag from the tail of a Mirage F1 with a Kingdom of Libya flag (Reuters)

In early 2015, the Misrata-based Libya Dawn Air Force (LDAF) managed to make operational both of its Mirage F1s, but their pilots then refused to "bomb Libyan people".

The two Mirages flew to Malta in February 2011 during theLibyan uprising, when rebels overthrew the government of Muammar Gaddafi.

They were piloted by two senior officers, Ali al-Rabti and Abdullah al-Salheen, who claimed to have defected after being ordered to bomb civilians protesting in Benghazi.

The jets returned to Okba Ben Nafi air base near Tripoli in February 2012.

From February 2015, the Ukrainian Glissada company, specialising in the supply of spare parts for airplanes and helicopters of various nations, began looking for pilots and technicians with experience on the Mirage F1 for full-time jobs in Africa.

The final client was Libya Dawn, via the Caravana Middle East company based in Jordan and directed by a US-Jordanian, Rami Ghanem Najm, according to MEE's source. Najm was arrested in December 2015 in Greece on an international arrest warrant and extradited to the