Libya lays army chief of staff to rest in Misrata

Misrata, Libya – After days of mourning, Libya is laying to remainder the service chief, General Mohammed al-Haddad, and 4 different salient subject figures successful the country.

Al-Haddad, his elder adviser, Mohamed al-Essawi, and his subject cameraman, Mohamed al-Mahjoub, were transported to their hometown successful Misrata connected Saturday evening for burial.

Also killed successful the craft clang successful cardinal Turkiye connected Tuesday were the commandant of service onshore forces, General Fetouri Ghrebil, and the caput of subject manufacturing, Mahmoud al-Gedewi, whose remains were moved to their respective hometowns for burial.

The 5 were returning to the North African state from Ankara aft meetings with Turkish defence officials, conscionable a time aft the Turkish parliament voted to widen the beingness of its troops successful Libya, arsenic portion of efforts to bolster subject practice betwixt Turkiye and the internationally recognised authorities successful Tripoli.

Turkish authorities accidental preliminary investigations suggest a method failure.

A Libyan subject committee went to Ankara connected Wednesday to assistance the investigation. A committee subordinate told Al Jazeera that some countries agreed to transportation the aircraft’s formation recorder to a neutral state for a afloat investigation.

‘A dreadful scene’

After visiting the tract of the crash, sources from the Libyan subject committee told Al Jazeera it was a “dreadful scene”, with assemblage parts scattered everywhere.

Identification was truthful hard that authorities had to execute DNA investigating connected the assemblage parts to place which of the craft passengers they belonged to.

It was lone aft the long, painstaking process was completed that the bodies were yet repatriated to Libya.

A Turkish subject ceremonial was held successful their honour aboriginal connected Saturday morning, past the bodies were enactment connected an aeroplane for the travel to Libya, but matters became analyzable astatine that point.

The seemingly straightforward substance of holding ceremonies for the deceased became an contented arsenic details similar wherever they would beryllium held were debated hotly successful the fractured country.

Is General al-Haddad replaceable?

The Tripoli authorities is overseen by the Presidential Council, a three-member assemblage that serves arsenic the ultimate commandant of the military, according to the Libyan Political Agreement.

However, Libya’s rival authorities successful the east, controlled by renegade subject commandant Khalifa Haftar, bash not recognise them, contempt the eastern-based parliament signing the agreement.

Libyan subject delegation members get astatine the wreckage tract connected December 24, 2025 [Adem Altan/AFP]

Al-Haddad was seen by immoderate arsenic a antheral of peace, well-respected by radical crossed the country, adjacent those helium fought against.

He played a important relation successful the combat against Haftar during the latter’s subject run connected Tripoli successful 2019, an battle that saw Haftar’s forces connected the outskirts of Tripoli.

Under al-Haddad, authorities forces retook occidental Libya and forced Haftar backmost to the east, and al-Haddad helped pave the mode for the nationalist ceasefire statement signed successful 2020.

Haftar released a connection saying helium was “deeply saddened” by al-Haddad’s decease and expressed his condolences to his family.

In May, clashes broke retired astir Mitiga planetary airdrome betwixt authorities forces and the Special Deterrent Force, a almighty equipped radical that reports to the Presidential Council and opposes the interim premier curate successful Tripoli, Abdul Hamid Dbeibah.

Dbeibah gave the Special Deterrent Force (SDF) an ultimatum to manus implicit the airport, their prisons, and assimilate into the authorities information apparatus, oregon beryllium targeted by the government.

With assistance and involution by the Turkish government, a ceasefire was reached, and a truce committee, chaired by al-Haddad, was established by the Presidential Council and the United Nations Support Mission successful Libya (UNSMIL).

There is nary uncertainty that uncovering a replacement for al-Haddad volition not beryllium an casual task. The Presidential Council appointed his deputy, General Salah al-Namroush, temporarily.

During his eulogy, al-Namroush “bid farewell to the men of the federation who carried the nation’s burdens and made subject a mode of beingness and enactment a responsibility”.

He said helium would travel successful the footsteps of al-Haddad, and pledged “to proceed unifying the army”.

Although it volition beryllium difficult, governmental expert Mohamed Mahfoudh told Al Jazeera: “Discussions are already nether way; fixed the value of the position, I expect a determination to beryllium made wrong the adjacent 10 days.”

Libya has seen wide vexation and caller protests against the authorities implicit the economical situation, prompting officials to denote a program to reshuffle the furniture earlier this month.

The shuffle was scheduled to beryllium announced connected December 24, but al-Haddad’s decease postponed that.

Libya’s service Chief of Staff General Mohammed al-Haddad was killed successful a level clang successful Turkiye. Shown present successful Tripoli, Libya, connected October 3, 2022 [Yousef Murad/AP]

“Now, the main of unit presumption volition beryllium entered into the furniture reshuffle discussions. That means Haddad’s replacement could beryllium a governmental determination to appease definite stakeholders, alternatively than idiosyncratic who is qualified for the position.

“That’s a fearfulness galore of america have,” Mahfoudh said.

A communicative of 2 airports

In an illustration of Libya’s split, the authorities successful Tripoli had to person the bodies of al-Haddad and different subject officials astatine the city’s planetary airport, which was destroyed successful warring successful 2014.

It is presently nether renovation and present serves lone authorities and exigency aesculapian evacuation planes.

However, usually the bodies would person been received astatine Mitiga planetary airport, which is present Tripoli’s main commercialized airport, but since it is nether SDF control, PM Dbeibah could not beryllium there.

He is not welcome.

So, Dbeibah, members of the Presidential Council, and elder authorities and subject officials waited for the bodies astatine Tripoli planetary airport.

They were taken to an service basal successful confederate Tripoli for a subject ceremonial successful their honour, wherever Presidential Council head, Mohamed al-Menfi, declared “the promotion of each martyr to the adjacent rank”, making al-Haddad a tract marshal posthumously.

“Field Marshal Mohamed al-Haddad was a cornerstone to protecting the authorities and maintaining stability,” said Dbeibah astatine the ceremony.

He assured radical that investigations into the clang “are continuing with afloat accuracy and credibility successful coordination with Turkiye”.

Al-Haddad, al-Essawi, and al-Mahjoub’s bodies were flown to their hometowns successful Misrata connected Saturday evening.

On Sunday morning, radical came from each implicit the state to laic them to rest.

Thousands of radical gathered successful the Misrata shot stadium for a farewell supplication for the departed. Misrata metropolis officials announced the time arsenic an authoritative vacation to springiness radical clip disconnected to be the funeral.

Abdullah Allafi, a tribal person from al-Rajban successful the Nafusa Mountains of occidental Libya, near location astatine 3am to thrust hundreds of kilometres to wage his respects.

When asked astir al-Haddad’s death, helium said: “It’s a immense loss. Mohamed al-Haddad’s decease is simply a nonaccomplishment for each of america and for Libya. He was a existent patriot. May Allah remainder his soul.

“Our beingness present is simply a awesome of unity. Enough divisions, it’s clip to travel unneurotic and physique a federation and a agreed military.”