The body of a US soldier who went missing during a training exercise in Morocco has been recovered and identified as 1st Lt. Kendrick Lamont Key Jr., the US Army said.
Key, 27, of Richmond, Virginia, was a platoon leader and air defence artillery officer. A Moroccan military search team found his body in the water near the shoreline, about a mile from the cliffs where he and another soldier disappeared on May 2.
Both soldiers were taking part in African Lion 2026, the continent’s largest annual joint military exercise hosted across Morocco, Ghana, Senegal, and Tunisia. According to a preliminary report cited by CBS News, the group had been hiking to watch the sunset when one soldier fell into the ocean. Others tried to rescue him using a human chain made of belts, and a second soldier jumped in to help. That soldier was hit by a wave, prompting a third to jump in. Only the third soldier made it back to camp.
It’s unclear whether Key was the first soldier to fall or the second who attempted the rescue. US and Moroccan forces are still searching for the other missing soldier using ground, air, and maritime assets.
Brig. Gen. Curtis King, commanding general of the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, said the unit is mourning Key’s loss. His body has been taken to a nearby morgue and will be repatriated to the US.
