Two US soldiers who went missing in Morocco fell off a cliff in hiking accident, official says
WASHINGTON, DC: Two missing US soldiers, who were deployed in the North African country of Morocco for training purposes, fell off a cliff into the ocean, a US official revealed on condition of anonymity. According to the official, the soldiers were last seen near the eastern cliffs.
A massive search operation was launched after the servicemen went missing on May 2. Air, land, and sea searches were conducted by US forces in collaboration with Moroccan and allied forces in the Cap Draa Training Area.
US soldiers Morocco incident likely hiking accident
Denying reports of extremist groups involvement in the disappearance, a US official said the incident appears to be a hiking accident, CBS reported. Sources also told the outlet that the accident was not related to the training exercise.
CBS News reported that its journalists, who were on the ground and in their tents, heard helicopters “throughout the night” and into Sunday after a “base-wide head-count” failed to account for the missing soldiers.
Several helicopters, vessels, drones, mountaineers, and divers carried out the search operation to locate the missing individuals, who were confirmed to be US Army personnel. The names and other details of the soldiers have not been released.
US and Moroccan assets were redirected to the search and rescue operation, bringing the training exercise to a halt.
African Lion military exercise in Morocco training
The missing soldiers were taking part in the annual joint military training exercise called African Lion. The exercise brings together troops from the US Army, allied African countries, and NATO militaries to train annually in Northern and Western Africa.
It is the largest annual joint military exercise led by AFRICOM, one of the US Department of Defense’s 11 unified combatant commands.
More than 7,000 personnel from over 30 countries participated in this year’s training exercise. The drill takes place in a vast desert where the Sahara meets the Atlantic Ocean near the Cap Draa Training Area, outside the city of Tan-Tan.
This year’s training focuses on advanced technologies, including drones, autonomous systems, and artificial intelligence, according to the Associated Press.
A similar incident occurred in 2012, when two US Marines were killed and two others were injured in a helicopter crash during the African Lion exercise.
