Libya’s chief of general staff, Lt. Gen. Mohammed Ali Ahmed al-Haddad, was killed on Tuesday, Dec. 23, 2025, when a business jet en route from Ankara to Tripoli crashed after issuing an emergency landing signal, Turkish and Libyan officials said.
Turkey’s Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said the aircraft — a Dassault Falcon 50 — took off from Ankara’s Esenboğa Airport at 17:10 GMT and contact was lost 42 minutes later. Turkish security teams later located the wreckage in Ankara’s Haymana district, south of the capital.
Libya’s Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah confirmed al-Haddad’s death and said Tripoli had been informed by Turkish authorities after communications were lost. Turkish Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç said prosecutors in Ankara opened an investigation into the crash.
Emergency signal, then silence
Yerlikaya said the aircraft sent an emergency landing notification while over Haymana, but communications could not be restored before the crash. Turkish media broadcast footage showing the night sky briefly illuminated by what appeared to be an explosion near the area where the jet signaled distress.
Libyan officials cited a possible technical failure while stressing that they would await the findings of Turkey’s inquiry. A senior Turkish official told media the jet requested an emergency landing due to an electrical failure, though investigators have not publicly confirmed a cause.
Who was on board?
Turkish and Libyan statements said al-Haddad and four other Libyan officials were killed, with identities including senior military figures and an adviser.
Some reports also said three crew members died, bringing the total fatalities higher, though their names were not immediately released.
Al-Haddad had been chief of staff since August 2020, a period in which Libya’s internationally recognized authorities have sought — with uneven success — to unify fragmented military structures after years of division.
Trip’s context: Turkey-Libya defense ties
Al-Haddad had traveled to Ankara for meetings with Turkey’s military leadership, including talks with his Turkish counterpart, Selçuk Bayraktaroğlu, and Turkey’s defense minister, Yaşar Güler, according to official Turkish statements.
Turkey has long backed Libya’s UN-recognized government in Tripoli with military and economic support, while also expanding contacts with eastern factions in recent years
