On 28 February, Saddam Haftar, Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA) Ground Forces (and son of Khalifa Haftar), met with several commanders of LNA military units near Sirte, where the LNA is conducting a major military manoeuvre. He was briefed about the manoeuvre and inspected some of the units.
The manoeuvre includes a major joint and combined-arms live fire exercise. Among the participating units are the elite Tariq Bin Ziyad Brigade and the Saiqa Special Forces. Furthermore, some Wagner mercenaries will also participate, including fighter jet pilots. [According to the LNA, this is the largest ground forces military manoeuvre in the history of Libya.
On 3 March, the LNA announced that six members of the 5th Saiqa Special Forces Battalion had lost their lives during the manoeuvre in the Sirte area. They had unintentionally landed in the sea during a parachute jump in support of an amphibious landing and were unable to free themselves from their parachutes.