Two U.S. service members participating in African Lion 2026 have been reported missing near the Cap Draa Training Area in southwestern Morocco, U.S. Africa Command confirmed Sunday. The two Americans were reported missing on May 2 near the city of Tan Tan, a coastal area roughly 15 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. U.S., Moroccan, and partner forces immediately launched coordinated search-and-rescue operations involving ground, air, and maritime assets. AFRICOM said the incident remains under investigation and the search is ongoing. Two U.S. service members participating in African Lion 2026 were reported missing near the Cap Draa Training Area, near the city of Tan Tan, Morocco, May 2, 2026.https://t.co/7zxpKQRHfB — U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) (@USAfricaCommand) May 3, 2026 U.S. Africa Command released a statement confirming the disappearance and the scope of the response: Two U.S. service members taking part in African Lion 2026 were reported missing near the Cap Draa Training Area, close to the city of Tan Tan, Morocco, on May 2, 2026. The command said U.S., Moroccan, and other African Lion assets immediately began a coordinated search-and-rescue response after the report came in. The response includes ground, air, and maritime assets, underscoring the seriousness of the search and the difficulty of the location. The official update did not identify the missing Americans, their branches, their units, or the circumstances that led to the report. AFRICOM said the incident remains under investigation, the search is ongoing, and additional details will be released as they become available. At the time of writing, there was no official recovery update and no released casualty finding. That leaves the public record narrow, but clear on the active search. No names, service branches, units, or details about the circumstances of the disappearance have been released. AFRICOM has not disclosed any information about injuries or casualty status. African Lion is U.S. Africa Command’s largest annual joint exercise on the continent. The 2026 iteration launched in late April and spans multiple countries, including Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana, and Senegal, with U.S. troops training alongside partner forces across a range of military scenarios. U.S. Africa Command announced the start of the exercise just days before the incident: African Lion 26 launched in Morocco as part of U.S. Africa Command’s premier annual joint exercise with the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces and other partners. The exercise spans multiple host nations, including Morocco, Ghana, Senegal, and Tunisia, and brings together U.S. troops with African and allied forces for large-scale multinational training. The command has described African Lion as a readiness and interoperability exercise meant to strengthen collective security capabilities across the region. The 2026 version includes thousands of troops from dozens of nations, with training built around joint operations, partner coordination, and real-world mission sets. That scale explains why U.S., Moroccan, and other exercise assets were already positioned to join the search once the two service members were reported missing near Cap Draa. The launch release also framed the drill as a partnership mission, not a standalone U.S. operation. The Cap Draa Training Area sits in a remote stretch of southwestern Morocco near the Atlantic coast. The terrain and proximity to open water add complexity to search-and-rescue efforts, particularly when the cause and nature of the disappearance remain unknown.