TEHRAN – Iran has extended its condolences to Libya following the death of the country’s army chief in a fatal plane crash near Ankara.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei described the incident as a tragedy and expressed sympathy to the Libyan government and people, as well as to the families of the victims. 

The aircraft was carrying Field Marshal Mohammed al-Haddad, chief of staff of the forces aligned with Libya’s UN-recognized Government of National Unity (GNU), when it went down.

The crash occurred early Tuesday as the private jet was returning from Ankara to Tripoli. Libyan authorities later confirmed that four other senior military officials were killed in the crash alongside al-Haddad. Those who died included General Al-Fitouri Ghraibil, commander of Libya’s ground forces; Brigadier General Mahmoud Al-Qatawi, head of the Military Manufacturing Authority; an advisor to the chief of staff; and a military photographer.

In addition to the Libyan officials, three crew members were also killed. Turkish authorities said the Falcon 50 jet was registered in Malta and had been leased. The identities of the crew members were not immediately released, pending official notification of their families.

Turkish officials said the aircraft, identified as a Falcon 50, requested an emergency landing shortly after takeoff due to an electrical malfunction. Communication with the plane was subsequently lost, and it later crashed in the Haymana district near Ankara.

On Wednesday, Turkish authorities announced they had recovered the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from the crash site as part of an ongoing investigation into the cause of the accident.

The tragedy comes as Libya prepares to mark its Independence Day on December 24–25, commemorating 74 years since the country’s liberation from Italian colonial rule. In light of the incident, the government has declared three days of national mourning.

Libya remains deeply divided between the UN-backed Government of National Unity in Tripoli, led by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah, and a rival administration in the east allied with commander Khalifa Haftar. The political rift has persisted since the NATO-backed uprising that toppled longtime leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.