Two US service members vanished during a military training exercise in southwestern Morocco, sparking a massive search effort by the US and allied forces.
US officials announced the search-and-rescue on Sunday. The service members went missing on Saturday at the Cap Draa Training Area near Tan Tan, a city in southwestern Morocco near the Atlantic coast.
A defense official told the Daily Mail that there is no suspicion of terrorism at this time, and the service members were last seen on ocean cliffs near the training area.
The official added that early reports indicate the soldiers may have fallen into the water.
‘The incident remains under investigation and the search is on-going,’ United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) stated.
The training exercise began late last month and has also been taking place in Tunisia, Ghana and Senegal. The war games exercise is called African Lion, and it is scheduled to end on May 8.
The allies engaged in the search include Morocco and other countries participating in African Lion. ‘Ground, air, and maritime assets’ have been deployed, according to AFRICOM.
The defense official told the Daily Mail that the 19th Special Forces Group, 1st Detachment, 2nd Air Support Operations Squadron, 3rd Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company, the 173rd Airborne Brigade and multiple Moroccan units are involved in the search.
Two US service members went missing on Saturday during a training exercise called African Lion in Morocco. US military forces are pictured during the same exercise last year
A large search-and-rescue effort is being conducted by the US and its allies in the region. A rocket being fired during a previous African Lion exercise is pictured
Neither AFRICOM nor the defense official said what unit or military branch the missing service members belong to.
A total of 7,000 personnel from more than 30 countries have been participating in African Lion.
African Lion takes place annually, and it is the largest training exercise of its kind on the continent.
It first began in 2004, and it is carried out by the US alongside regional allies. High-ranking military officials from the US and key allies participate.
The US Military has said that the multi-national exercise is key to strengthening regional security cooperation and refining the readiness of participating forces for global crises.
In 2012, two US Marines participating in African Lion died and two more were injured when a helicopter crashed in Morocco’s southern city of Agadir.
Morocco is one of the US’s top allies in northern and western Africa, where other countries in the region, such as Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, have been distancing themselves from Western powers since 2020.
AFRICOM stated that as the search is carried out, ‘Our focus is on the service members involved and their families.’
