2 US service members go missing during Morocco military exercise

Two U.S. service members went missing Saturday near Morocco's Atlantic coast during the African Lion multinational military exercise, U.S. Africa Command said, prompting a search and rescue operation involving forces from three countries.

The disappearance casts a spotlight on African Lion, described by AFRICOM as the largest U.S. annual joint military exercise on the African continent, an event that draws troops from dozens of nations each spring to rehearse regional security cooperation.

The two service members disappeared May 2 near the Cap Draa Training Area outside Tan Tan, a coastal city in southwestern Morocco, The Korea Times reported, citing an AFRICOM statement. The training site lies close to the Atlantic Ocean.

Search and rescue efforts are now underway with participation from U.S. forces, the Moroccan military and other nations taking part in the exercise, AFRICOM said. "The incident remains under investigation and the search is on-going," the command said in a statement, according to The Korea Times.

African Lion runs annually from late April into early May, rotating through sites across North and West Africa. AFRICOM describes it as the largest U.S. joint military exercise on the continent, designed to strengthen regional security cooperation and refine the readiness of participating forces.

No identities of the missing service members have been released. AFRICOM did not detail the circumstances under which the two disappeared.

AFRICOM has not indicated when the investigation is expected to conclude or provided a timeline for the ongoing search operation.