On 20 May, the spokesman of the Turkish Ministry of Defence Zeki Aktürk, announced in a press briefing that in total 502 Libyan forces soldiers participated in the ongoing EFES-2026 manoeuvres in İzmir, 331 from the east of the country (including a naval vessel) and 171 from the west. According to Aktürk, this joint deployment is the first external participation of a ‘unified’ Libyan military formation, with troops from both rival regions training under a single national flag. The Libyan contingent is training a broad set of skills, including: small boat handling, amphibious operations, mine and IED clearance, field fortification, survival skills, special forces tactics, first aid and medical support, air ground coordination, and search and rescue in combat environments. The Turkish MoD presented these activities as part of a wider effort to advance the goal of “One Libya, One Army”, arguing that joint training improves coordination and operational cohesion between Libya’s divided forces.
Aktürk stressed that EFES 2026 builds upon the successes of last month’s US AFRICOM Flintlock 2026 special operations exercise conducted in Libya and Côte d’Ivoire. He said that this EFES-2026 exercise also included a prominent Turkish role liaising with their Libyan counterparties. Turkey deployed Aksungur MALE (medium-altitude long-endurance) and Akinci HALE (high-altitude long-endurance) multirole drones from Dalaman (on the southwestern coast of Turkey) to Libya on a transcontinental flight, and Turkish naval units conducted helicopter fast rope insertions and ship seizure drills alongside Libyan personnel in Sirte.
The MoD spokesman framed both EFES-2026 and Flintlock-2026 as ‘demonstrations of international support for Libya’s sovereignty and independence, while also serving as vehicles for deepening Libya’s operational capabilities’. Aktürk noted that more than 23,000 Libyan troops, mostly from western Libya, have already received Turkish training. He said that ongoing assistance also covers mine and UXO clearance, counter smuggling, counter terrorism, and efforts to curb irregular migration.
Libyan Army Acting Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Salaheddin al-Namroush was present in Turkey during in the Distinguished Visitor Day (DVD) program of the exercises. The DVD was attended by Turkey’s Minister of Defence Yaşar Güler, senior Turkish military commanders, and defence ministers and chiefs of staff from other participating countries.
On 21 May, the exercise concluded with a final demonstration drill featuring coordinated land, naval, and air operations in the Gulf of Izmir in the presence of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Defence Minister Yaşar Güler, senior Turkish commanders, and chiefs of staff from participating countries, including Lieutenant General al-Namroush.
On the sidelines, al Namroush held a meeting with the Turkish Minister of Defense to discuss military cooperation, expanded training and capacity building, and ways to strengthen bilateral defense coordination.