Libyan army chief killed in plane crash near Ankara, black box recovered

Wednesday 24 December 2025 - 10:30

By: Sahili Aya

Libyan army chief killed in plane crash near Ankara, black box recovered

The Libyan army’s chief of staff, General Mohammed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad, was killed on Tuesday evening in a plane crash near Ankara, Turkish authorities confirmed. All eight people on board the aircraft, including several senior advisers and crew members, lost their lives in the accident.

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on Wednesday that the aircraft’s black box and cockpit voice recorder had been recovered and handed over to the relevant authorities for analysis. Search and rescue teams continued working at the crash site, located around 50 kilometers southeast of the Turkish capital, despite difficult weather conditions marked by heavy rain and dense fog.

According to initial information provided by Turkish officials, the business jet, a Falcon 50, reported an electrical malfunction shortly after takeoff from Ankara’s Esenboğa Airport. The aircraft reportedly requested to return to the airport, but contact was lost less than an hour after departure while flying over the Haymana region.

Libyan Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah expressed deep sorrow over the death of the army chief, describing the loss as a major blow to the country. A judicial investigation has been launched by Turkish prosecutors to determine the exact causes of the crash.

General Al-Haddad was in Ankara for an official visit and had held meetings with senior Turkish defense officials earlier that day. Turkey remains a key ally of Libya’s UN-recognized government in Tripoli, providing political, military, and economic support amid Libya’s ongoing instability.