Libyan Army Chief Dies in Plane Crash Near Ankara
Libyan army chief of staff General Mohammed Ali Ahmed al-Haddad died in a plane crash after departing from Ankara, Turkey, while returning to Tripoli. The private Dassault Falcon 50 jet, carrying four members of Haddad’s entourage—including the commander of Libya’s ground forces, director of the military manufacturing authority, an adviser to the chief of staff, and a photographer—as well as three crew members, experienced an electrical failure. The aircraft attempted an emergency landing but lost radio contact at 17:52 GMT following takeoff from Esenboğa airport at 17:10 GMT. Wreckage was later found near Kesikkavak village in the Haymana district of Ankara.
Libyan Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah confirmed Haddad’s death and noted that four others were on board the flight. Turkey’s defence ministry had announced Haddad’s visit, which included meetings with Turkish Defence Minister Yaşar Güler and his defence counterpart Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu. The crash comes shortly after the Turkish parliament voted to extend the mandate of Turkish soldiers deployed in Libya by two years, highlighting ongoing Turkish involvement in the country.
