Libya’s Army Chief killed in Turkye jet crash

Multiple teams on Wednesday (December 24, 2025) intensified their operations at the site of a plane crash that killed Libya’s military chief, and seven other members, working to secure the area and locate the aircraft’s flight recorders, Turkiye’s state-run news agency said.

The private jet carrying Gen. Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad, four other officers and three crew members crashed in Turkiye on Tuesday (December 23, 2025) after taking off from the capital, Ankara, killing everyone on board.

Libyan officials said the cause of the crash was a technical malfunction on the plane. The Libyan delegation was on its way back to Tripoli after holding high-level defence talks in Ankara aimed at boosting military cooperation between the two countries.

Also Read I Turkey says electrical failure reported before Libyan military jet crash

Following the incident, Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibeh took into Facebook, describing the incident on Facebook as a “tragic accident” and a “great loss” for Libya. State-run Anadolu agency said Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya is expected to visit the site along with prosecutors assigned to lead the investigation.

Al-Hadad was the top military commander in western Libya and played a crucial role in the ongoing UN-brokered efforts to unify Libya’s military, which has split, much like Libya’s other institutions. The four other officers who died in the crash were General Al-Fitouri Ghraibil, the head of Libya’s ground forces, Brigadier Gen. Mahmoud Al-Qatawi, who led the military manufacturing authority, Mohammed Al-Asawi Diab, advisor to the chief of staff, and Mohammed Omar Ahmed Mahjoub, a military photographer with the chief of staff’s office. The identities of the three crew members were not immediately released.

In an announcement, the Turkish officials said the Falcon 50-type business jet took off from Ankara’s Esenboga airport at 8:30 pm. “The plane notified air traffic control of an electrical fault and requested an emergency landing. The aircraft was redirected back to Esenboga, where preparations for its landing began. The plane, however, disappeared from the radar while descending for the emergency landing”, the Turkish presidential communications office said.

The wreckage remains of the plane were recovered near Kesikkavak village in Haymana, around 70 kilometres, south of Ankara. The paramilitary force sealed off the crash site, while the Turkish disaster management agency, AFAD, set up a mobile coordination centre, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. Specialised vehicles, such as tracked ambulances, were deployed because of the muddy terrain.

Libya plunged into chaos after the country’s 2011 uprising toppled and killed dictator Muamar Qadhafi. The country was split, with rival administrations in the east and west, backed by an array of rogue militias and foreign governments. Turkiye has been allied with Libya’s government in the west, but has recently taken steps to improve ties with the eastern-based government as well.

Libyan delegation’s Tuesday (December 23, 2025) visit came a day after Turkiye’s parliament approved extending the mandate of Turkish troops serving in Libya for two years. Turkiye deployed troops following a 2019 security and military cooperation agreement that was reached between Ankara and the Tripoli-based government.