Tripoli— The head of the Government of National Unity (GNU) Abdulhamid Dbeibeh announced the death of Lieutenant General Mohammed Al-Haddad, Chief of Staff of the Libyan Army in Tripoli along with three more senior military officers in a plane crash soon after taking off from Esenboğa Airport in Ankara, Turkey. Al-Haddad and his delegation were in an official visit to Turkey.

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on Tuesday evening that contact was lost with the plane carrying Al-Haddad. He said, “We received a report from the plane about an emergency landing in the Haymana district (near Ankara), but contact with the aircraft was subsequently lost.”

Later, Minister Yerlikaya  stated in another post on the X platform that gendarmerie forces were able to locate the wreckage of the plane with all on board were dead. Contact was lost at 8:52 PM with a Falcon 50 aircraft, serial number 9H-DFJ, shortly after it took off from Esenboğa Airport in Ankara at 8:10 PM, en route to Tripoli.

In addition to General Al-Haddad, those on board the plane were Lieutenant General al-Fitouri Ghraibil, Chief of Staff of the Ground Forces and member of the Joint Military Commission (5+5); Brigadier General Mahmoud al-Qatawi, Head of the Military Industries Corporation;  Mohammed al-Asawi Diab, Advisor to the Chief of the General Staff of the Libyan Army; and Mohammed Omar Ahmed Mahjoub, a photographer in the media office of the Chief of the General Staff. This in addition to three unnamed foreign crew members.

Mr. Dbeibeh said “this tragic loss is a great loss for the nation, the military institution, and all the people, as we have lost men who served their country with loyalty and dedication, and who were exemplary in their discipline, responsibility, and national commitment,” according to a statement by the GNU.

However, the Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Marshal Khalifa Haftar offered his deepest condolences and sincere sympathies on the death of General Al-Haddad to his family, his city and above all the Libyan people, according to a statement by the LNA.

Haftar also offered his condolences to all officers and members of the Armed Forces “on the loss of one of its men who performed his military duty with utmost dedication and responsibility, bearing the trust placed in him during critical periods in the nation’s history, and prioritizing national values ​​above all other interests,” the statement said.

He also expressed his deepest condolences to the Joint Military Commission (5+5) on the loss of its member, General Al-Fitouri Ghraibil, and to his family, relatives, and loved ones.

On Monday, General Al-Haddad attended a security meeting in Tripoli chaired by the Chairman of the Presidential Council, Mohamed Menfi, along with PM Dbeibeh, the Minister of Interior, the Deputy Minister of Defense and several other senior military and security officials.

During his short visit to Ankara, Al-Haddad was received with official ceremonies by the Turkish Chief of the General Staff, Selçuk Bayrakdağoğlu, at the General Staff headquarters, and also met with the Turkish Minister of Defense, Yaşar Güler.

Meanwhile, the Turkish parliament has recently approved a presidential decree extending the mandate of Turkish forces stationed in western Libya for two more years, within the framework of security and military agreements signed between Ankara and the former Government of National Accord.

The extension includes the continuation of training, advisory, and technical support missions, falling under the umbrella of military cooperation between the two sides. Turkey maintains that its military presence is at the request of the internationally recognized Libyan authorities.

The Turkish channel NTV reported that the ill-fated aircraft requested to return and make an emergency landing after takeoff. A landing route was prepared following a report of an electrical malfunction, before contact was lost. The channel also reported, citing eyewitnesses, that an explosion was heard in the area, while surveillance cameras captured a bright light in the sky at the same time contact with the aircraft was lost.