General Mohammed al-Haddad and his four aides died on Tuesday after a visit to Ankara, with Turkish officials saying an electrical failure caused their plane to crash less than 15 minutes after takeoff.

"It will be hard to find a man of his calibre," Nasreddine al-Maghribi told AFP at a cafe in Libyan capital Tripoli.

Haddad "enjoyed great popularity in the east and west of the country, and we had hoped that he would play a key role in the leadership of a united Libyan army", said Maghribi, who is in his sixties.

Libya has been divided since a NATO-backed revolt toppled and killed longtime leader Moamer Kadhafi in 2011.

Haddad had been the army's chief of general staff since August 2020.

In Tripoli, seat of the internationally recognised Government of National Unity (GNU), celebrations to mark Libya's independence day were cancelled.

Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah heads the GNU in the west, while commander Khalifa Haftar's administration runs the east.

Both Dbeibah and Haftar have declared a three-day mourning period in the areas they control.

Civil society activist Nouri Ben Othman described Haddad as "an emblematic figure for our nation".

"He was not just a military leader, but also a symbol who shouldered the responsibility of unifying the institution of the military, and who worked towards a national reconciliation," he told AFP.

"The loss of such a figure is a loss for the nation."

The UN mission to Libya, UNSMIL, also paid tribute to Haddad, describing him in a post on X as "a steadfast advocate for the unification of Libya's military and civilian institutions, peace and stability for a strong Libya".

"He was a professional officer who put national interests first and a patriot who loved his country," the mission added.

Until a successor is selected, Haddad's deputy, General Salaheddine al-Namroush, will stand in for him, according to the presidential council.

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