China is shining military-grade lasers at US pilots flying out of Djibouti base

China last year opened a naval base just miles from the US facility

epa06083053 (FILE) - People's Liberation Army (PLA) soldiers participate in a flag raising ceremony during an open day at the PLA navy base in Hong Kong, China, 08 July 2017 (reissued 12 July 2017). According to reports, China ships carrying military personnel departed on 11 July 2017 from Zhanjiang, southern China and set sails to Djibouti. China is to establish it's fiorst ever overseas military base in the Djibouti, at the Horn of Africa.  EPA/JEROME FAVRE *** Local Caption *** 53634628
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Chinese nationals have on multiple occasions shone military-grade laser pointers at US pilots operating out of the American base in Djibouti, the Pentagon said Thursday.

Officials have issued a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded Beijing investigate a series of incidents dating back several weeks, spokeswoman Dana White said.

"They are very serious incidents", White said. "This activity poses a true threat to our airmen".

In one case, two pilots on a C-130 cargo plane suffered minor eye injuries as they came in to land at the base in the Horn of Africa nation, another spokeswoman, Major Sheryll Klinkel, told AFP.

Located at Djibouti international airport, the US military's Camp Lemonnier base is its only permanent facility in Africa. It is used largely for counter-terrorism operations in East Africa and Yemen.

China last year opened a naval base in Djibouti, only a few miles (kilometers) from the US facility, marking the first overseas base for Beijing's rapidly growing military.

White said she was "confident" that whoever had shone the high-powered lasers was Chinese.

Officials told The Wall Street Journal the laser likely came from the Chinese base.

The Federal Aviation Administration last month published a warning to pilots to use extreme caution in the area.

"There have been multiple lazing events involving a high-power laser in the vicinity", the warning reads.