in the electrical circuits of the Dassault Falcon 50 that carried the chief of the general staff of the army, Mohamed al-Haddad, the pilot reported a few minutes after taking off from the airport of Esenboga, bound for Tripoli, and according to the Turkish authorities, he also requested permission for an emergency landing.
Despite immediately mobilizing air traffic services and turning the aircraft back to Ankara, the jet was lost to radar on descent and crashed in a rural area of Haimana province. Eight people, including three crew members, Denis Porteau, Anthony Tangarpriganin and Maria Pappa (reportedly these were the names of the crew and Pappa was probably a Greek flight attendant), lost their lives. The Turkish authorities note that as an initial assessment they have excluded the accident as a result of some sabotage.
According to reports, the plane belongs to the Malta-based Harmony Jets company and the crew is all foreign nationals.
The crew were:
Denis Pourtau
Antony Tangarpriganin
Maria Papa
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Libya’s government of national unity confirmed that al-Haddad was among the dead, as well as four members of his entourage, declaring three days of national mourning. Libyan officials said the aircraft was leased and registered in Malta, and an investigation into its technical history and the causes of the crash is ongoing, involving the relevant Turkish and international authorities.
Who was Mohammed Al Haddad and what does his loss mean?
The loss of the chief of the General Staff is seen as a blow to the Tripoli government, as Mohammed al-Haddad was a central pillar of military and political stability in western Libya. He was not only the top military officer of the forces controlling the capital, but also a key interlocutor in the United Nations peace initiatives to form the government of national unity.
Indicative of his wider acceptance is the fact that condolences and statements of mourning were recorded even from eastern Libya, with Arab media citing statements from both Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar and the Benghazi parliament.
As a report by the Al Jazeera network points out, al-Haddad’s death is a “huge loss” for the Libyan armed forces, as he was a person who enjoyed respect throughout the country. He had always been in favor of national reconciliation and the reunification of Libya, avoiding collusion with the powerful paramilitary groups that dominate after the fall of Gaddafi.
Born in Misrata 58 years ago, he graduated from the military academy in 1987 and served in the armed forces of the Gaddafi regime, before siding with the opposition during the Arab Spring in 2011. In August 2020, he was appointed head of the armed forces by then-Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj.
His presence in Ankara was linked to the efforts of the Dbeiba government to strengthen military cooperation with Turkey, within the framework of the bilateral agreements that have been signed in recent years.
