Libya’s army chief of staff, Lieutenant General Mohammed Ali Ahmed al-Haddad, has been killed along with four other senior officials in a plane crash near the Turkish capital, Ankara, Libyan Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah confirmed on Tuesday.

In an official statement, Prime Minister Dbeibah described the incident as a “tragic incident” that occurred while the Libyan delegation was returning to Tripoli after an official visit to Türkiye. He said the loss was a “great tragedy for the nation, the military institution, and the Libyan people”.

"This followed a tragic and painful incident while they were returning from an official trip from the Turkish city of Ankara. This grave loss is a great loss for the nation, for the military institution, and for all the people."

He said the commander of Libya's ground forces, the director of its military manufacturing authority, an adviser to the chief of staff, and a photographer from the chief of staff's office were also on the aircraft.

“We have lost men who served their country with sincerity, discipline and national commitment,” the prime minister said, offering condolences to the families of the victims, the armed forces, and the wider Libyan public.

#BREAKING: Libya's Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibeh confirms the death of Libyan army chief Muhammad Ali Ahmad al-Haddad and four others in a plane crash near Turkish capital Ankara pic.twitter.com/3L94ozfo9j
— TRT World (@trtworld) December 23, 2025

Emergency call before crash

Türkiye’s Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said the wreckage of the Dassault Falcon 50-type business jet was found in the Haymana district, around 74 kilometres (45 miles) south of Ankara. The aircraft had departed Ankara’s Esenboga Airport at 8:10pm local time (17:10 GMT) en route to Tripoli.

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According to Yerlikaya, radio contact with the jet was lost at 8:52pm (17:52 GMT). He said the aircraft had issued an emergency landing request while flying over the Haymana area, but no further communication could be established afterward.

Turkish authorities later confirmed that five people were on board the aircraft, including al-Haddad.

Senior officials among dead

Libyan officials said those killed alongside al-Haddad included:

The chief of staff of the land forces
The head of the military manufacturing authority
An adviser to the army chief
A photographer from the army’s media office

Libyan sources said contact with the plane was lost about half an hour into the flight, possibly due to a technical malfunction.

Key figure in Libya’s military

Mohammed al-Haddad was the top military commander in western Libya and played a central role in United Nations-backed efforts to unify Libya’s divided military institutions. A career military officer, he was widely respected within the armed forces for adhering to professional discipline and remaining neutral amid Libya’s powerful militias.

Al-Haddad had also played a prominent role on the side of the rebels during the 2011 uprising against former leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Libya–Türkiye ties

Türkiye’s defence ministry had earlier announced al-Haddad’s visit to Ankara, where he met his Turkish counterpart and other senior military commanders. The visit was part of ongoing military and security coordination between Türkiye and Libya’s UN-recognised Government of National Unity in Tripoli.

Ankara maintains close economic and military ties with Libya and has been a key supporter of the Tripoli-based government.

Investigations into the cause of the crash are ongoing, while both Libyan and Turkish authorities continue to coordinate following the deadly incident.