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Washington - The United Arab Emirates has secretly sent warplanes on bombing raids against Islamist militias in Libya over the past week, using bases in Egypt, two US officials said on Monday.
The two attacks carried out over the past week mark a dramatic expansion of the conflict and comes as the United States and its European allies denounced "outside interference" in Libya.
The bombing raids were first reported by The New York Times and Islamist forces in Libya also had alleged strikes had taken place.
"The UAE carried out those strikes," one of the officials told AFP on condition of anonymity.
Asked about the account, the senior US official said "the report is accurate".
The United States did not take part or provide any assistance in the bombing raids, the two officials said.
The first airstrikes took place a week ago, focusing on targets in Tripoli held by the militias, including a small weapons depot, according to the Times. Six people were killed in the bombing.
A second round was conducted south of the city early on Saturday targeting rocket launchers, military vehicles and a warehouse, according to the newspaper.
Those strikes may have represented a bid to prevent the imminent capture of the Tripoli airport, but the militia forces eventually prevailed and seized control of it.
Escalation of fighting and violence
The UAE - which has spent billions on US-manufactured warplanes and other advanced weaponry - provided the military aircraft, aerial refuelling planes and aviation crews to bomb Libya, while Cairo offered access to its air bases, the paper said.
But it remained unclear whether and to what degree Egypt and the UAE had informed the Americans in advance of the airstrikes.
When pressed on the issue, US officials could not confirm that Egypt and the Emirates had left Washington totally in the dark about the air attacks.
The strikes signalled a step toward direct action by regional Arab states that previously have fought proxy wars in Libya, Syria and Iraq in a struggle for power and influence.
Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the Emirates view Islamist militants in the region as a serious threat and have forged co-operation against what they see as a common danger.
The Islamist groups that emerged after the Arab Spring uprisings in turn have enjoyed support from Qatar and Turkey.
The bombing raids came amid a Western diplomatic push for a negotiated settlement to quell the violence in Libya, where the government's authority has unravelled in the face of the Islamist-linked militias.
Britain, France, Germany, Italy and the United States issued a joint statement on Monday condemning an "escalation of fighting and violence" in Libya and urged a democratic, peaceful transition.
The Western powers expressed particular concern over violence "against residential areas, public facilities, and critical infrastructure, by both land attacks and air strikes".
Without mentioning any air strikes by the UAE and Egypt, the statement said "outside interference in Libya exacerbates current divisions and undermines Libya's democratic transition".
The governments welcomed upcoming discussions at the UN Security Council on Libya and said "we encourage the international community to support Libya's elected institutions".
