TRIPOLI, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) said on Friday it has lost contact with a drone over the Libyan capital Tripoli.

"An unarmed U.S. Africa Command remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) was lost over Tripoli, Libya, Nov. 21," AFRICOM said in a statement later Friday.

"RPA operations are conducted in Libya to assess the ongoing security situation and monitor violent extremist activity. These operations are critical to counter terror activity in Libya and are fully coordinated with appropriate government officials," the statement said, adding that the incident is currently under investigation.

From time to time, AFRICOM targets terrorists in Libya in coordination with the country's UN-backed government.

Four U.S. airstrikes killed 43 terrorists in Libya in 2019, according to Col. Chris Karns, AFRICOM's director of public affairs.