Two American soldiers who participated in the annual multinational military exercise “African Lion 2026” in Morocco went missing. Following the discovery of one soldier’s body on May 9, the U.S. Army confirmed on Wednesday (May 13) that the body of the second soldier has been found, marking the end of a large-scale search operation.
The newly discovered body belonged to Specialist Mariyah Symone Collington, just 19 years old. She tragically fell to her death from a cliff during a leisure hiking trip with Lieutenant Kendrick Lamont Key Jr., 27, while on vacation in Morocco. Collington was an air defense and missile defense crew member assigned to the 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 5th Battalion, Charlie Battery of the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command under the U.S. Army’s European and African Commands.
Collington joined the regular Army through the Delayed Entry Program in 2023 and began active duty in 2024. She completed basic combat training and advanced individual training as a 14P air defense missile system crew member at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. In February 2025, she reported to Charlie Battery of the 5th Battalion of the 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment in Ansbach, Germany, and was promoted to Specialist on May 1, 2026. During her service, she was awarded the Army Service Ribbon.
The U.S. military in Europe and Africa stated that the Moroccan armed forces used a helicopter to transport the soldier’s body to the morgue at the Moulay El Hassan Military Hospital in Guelmim, Morocco.
The bodies of the two soldiers are currently being repatriated to the United States. A spokesperson for the U.S. Army Southern European Task Force (Africa) told the Associated Press that the two soldiers went missing on May 2 after participating in the “African Lion 2026” exercise, and the specifics of the incident are still under investigation.
U.S. Army and Air Force spokespersons added that their disappearance triggered a search involving over 1,000 U.S. and Moroccan military and civilian personnel. The search operation utilized various technologies and equipment, including the U.S. Navy’s P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, unmanned aerial systems, thermal imaging and ISR sensors, unmanned underwater vehicles, and side-scan sonar.
On May 10, an anonymous U.S. defense official unauthorized to speak publicly told the Associated Press that following the conclusion of the “African Lion 2026” joint military exercise on May 8, a U.S. special operations team remained in Morocco to continue search and rescue operations as well as provide command and control.
“African Lion 2026” is a U.S.-led joint military exercise. It kicked off in April this year in Morocco, Tunisia, Ghana, and Senegal, with over 7,000 personnel from over 30 countries participating. Since 2004, it has been the largest annual U.S. joint military exercise in Africa.
Accidents have occurred in the past during the “African Lion” exercises involving the U.S. military. In 2012, a helicopter crashed in the southern Moroccan city of Agadir, resulting in the deaths of two U.S. Marine Corps personnel and injuries to two others.
(Adapted from the Associated Press)