Members of the U.S. Army and Tunisian Armed Forces discuss training objectives during explosive ordnance disposal squad tactics exercises in Bizerte, Tunisia, during African Lion 2026. Two soldiers were reported missing on Saturday night in an incident unrelated to the military exercise. Photo by Staff Sgt. Cameron Christensen/U.S. Army
May 3 (UPI) — Two members of the U.S. Army were reported missing during a training event in Morocco on Sunday morning by the United States Africa Command.
The soldiers were participating in the U.S. military’s largest Africa-based exercise, African Lion, when the soldiers went missing on Saturday night during near the Cap Draa Training Area, which is near the city of Tan Tan, Morocco, AFRICOM said in a press release.
Military officials said their disappearance is unrelated to the exercise, but rather than they had gone on a hike near the training range and may have slipped off a cliff into the ocean, The New York Times reported.
“U.S., Moroccan and other assets from African Lion immediately initiated coordinated search and rescue operations, including ground, air and maritime assets,” AFRICOM said in the release.
“The incident remains under investigation and the search is on-going,” the command said.
The soldiers were discovered missing during a base-wide head-count around 9 p.m. local time, with helicopters searching throughout the night and various aircraft — including larger planes and drones — picking up the search on Sunday morning near the coast, CBS News reported.
African Lion is an annual joint military exercise that includes the U.S. military, NATO allies and African partner nations, and is hosted by Morocco, Ghana, Senegal and Tunisia, according to U.S. Army Europe and Africa.
This year’s event, scheduled to run from April 27 to May 8, includes 5,000 people from 40 countries.
