A biennial special operations and homeland security exhibition in Aqaba, Jordan, under royal patronage and supported by the Jordan Armed Forces, with the MESOC commanders conference held on 26 October and three exhibition days from 27 to 29 October 2026 at the last edition. As of 31 October 2026 the organiser had not announced the next edition.
The Special Operations Forces Exhibition and Conference, a biennial defence and security exhibition held in Aqaba, Jordan, on special operations, homeland security, unmanned systems and related equipment. The official site says it is held under the patronage of King Abdullah II and supported by the Jordan Armed Forces. The 2026 edition combined the 12th biennial Middle East Special Operations Commanders Conference (MESOC), described as the official conference of SOFEX, with an exhibition that included live air and land demonstrations, international pavilions and a visitor app.
Exhibition days: 27, 28 and 29 October 2026 (last edition, held); MESOC on 26 October 2026. As of 31 October 2026 the organiser had not announced the next edition. Aqaba International Exhibition & Convention Centre (AIECC), Aqaba, Jordan. At the 16 October 2026 check, the official homepage showed a countdown to the opening and the phrase "this October" but printed no calendar dates in its text; the dates come from event listings (Mittler Report, Defense Advancement, Unmanned Systems Technology, Neventum) and from a regional defence magazine, and match the countdown. The edition before it was held on 3 to 5 September 2024, with MESOC on 2 September, according to listings and royal court news.
Jordan Armed Forces, with the site stating "supported by the Jordan Armed Forces" and the 2026 principal partner listed as the Jordan Design and Development Bureau (JODDB) and the strategic partner as the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA). Office: P.O. Box 6384, Amman 11118, telephone +962 6 562 7301, mobile +962 77 6999018, info@sofexjordan.com. The site names no separate operating company, so whether the armed forces run the show directly or through a delegated team is not stated (unverifiable information).
No 2026 figure is published by the organiser. The homepage animates four counters (418 official delegates, 38 exhibiting countries, 73 countries represented, 20,000 visitors) without naming a year; these match reports of the 2024 edition (400+ delegates, 38 exhibiting countries, 73 countries), so they most likely describe 2024. A regional defence magazine quotes "preliminary indicators" of 400+ official delegates, 80+ countries and 40 nations in national pavilions for 2026; the article is not identified as the organiser's and the figures are unconfirmed (unverifiable information). The visitor categories are Visitor, Elite and MESOC; the audience is military delegations, government officials and the defence industry.
Not published. The MESOC page lists only the 2024 speakers (generals from the UK, Poland, Romania, the United States and Rwanda, among others) and gives no 2026 line-up. The 2024 list is not repeated here because it describes a different edition.
Visible on the official site as of 16 October 2026, before the last edition: MESOC was "officially open for attendance" with its own badge at 350 JOD; an Elite badge at 250 JOD with VIP lounge, express lane and a shooting range pass; a visitor badge with limited access, restricted until 13:00 on the first day; a shooting range open to visitors at 10 JOD per pass; a SOFEX Connect login area and a mobile app for iOS, Android and AppGallery; and a registration page with approval before payment. Other 2026 features reported only by a regional defence magazine: a cybersecurity zone, a VR solutions zone and seven new participating countries (unverifiable information). The previous fiche listed a USA Partnership Pavilion and an enlarged venue footprint; neither is on the official pages read.
MESOC on 26 October; three exhibition days; air and land live demonstrations, high-level bilateral engagements, unmanned systems and "shaping the future of defense" listed as show features. The homepage links a schedule of events and a shuttle bus programme as PDF files, which could not be read as text for this fiche. Themes on record: special operations, counter-terrorism, light weapons, tactical equipment and military technology (database); the homepage adds homeland security, tactical innovation, unmanned systems and global partnerships. MESOC expected themes on special operations force security, evolving threats, counter-terrorism, technology and strategic planning.
An exhibition with indoor and outdoor displays, live air and land demonstrations, a commanders conference (MESOC), bilateral engagements for delegations, international pavilions run by appointed agents (Azerbaijan, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Slovakia, Türkiye, USA), and a shooting range for visitors.
The partner list includes a gala dinner sponsor (Jordan Commercial Bank) and a VIP lounge sponsor (Etihad Bank), so a gala dinner and a VIP lounge exist; the dinner's date and who may attend are not published. Official lunches are sponsored by MCE. Dates and access terms of the schedule PDF were not readable.
All prices in Jordanian dinars, with the organiser's approximate USD conversion. These were the prices of the last edition, as published on 16 October 2026. Visitor, Jordanian: 30 JOD (about 42 USD). Visitor, non-Jordanian: 150 JOD (about 212 USD). Elite: 250 JOD (about 353 USD), access 09:00 to 17:00 on all event days, express lane, VIP lounge, one shooting range pass, 10% off the SOFEX shop. MESOC: 350 JOD (about 494 USD), including the conference plus the Elite benefits. A shooting range pass is 10 JOD for Visitor badge holders. Payment is requested only after the application is approved. VAT treatment is not stated.
Not publicly disclosed. The official pages publish no call for speakers or proposal form. MESOC is described as attended by high-ranking military and government officials, which suggests an invitation-based line-up, but this is not stated. Enquiries: info@sofexjordan.com.
Exhibitors book space through the "Book Space Now" link and the exhibitor portal; international pavilions are organised through listed agents in ten countries (contacts on the Exhibit page). Sponsors request the brochure or write to marketing@sofexjordan.com; no prices are published. Approved contractors: Emdad for stand build, AEYE for banner printing, Global Logistics Freight Services as freight forwarder, Nirvana Travel for travel and logistics, With Thomas for photography, Dar Ne'meh for catering and Mabani for cleaning.
Partners of the last edition, as published on 16 October 2026:
The 2026 exhibitor list on the official site holds 331 entries (316 distinct names after removing duplicates), searchable by country; the filter covers more than 120 countries, so the list is international. Entries seen range from firearms and optics makers to vehicles, training, universities and defence media, plus national pavilions such as the ADNEC UAE pavilion. No breakdown by company type is published.
For media registration, the registration page directs journalists to marketing@sofexjordan.com. No accreditation deadline or criteria are published. The registration form itself is for Visitor, Elite and MESOC badges.
Coverage is dominated by defence publications that are also media partners. Armada International (media partner), Al Defaiya (media partner), Defense Arabia (media partner) and Defence Turkey Magazine (media partner) are on the 2026 partner list. The previous fiche cited Armada International (media partner) for its figures, and a royal court news item covered the 2024 opening. Independent coverage of 2026 was not located.
Placed: the 2026 media partner list holds 32 outlets (listed above, all media partners), so most trade coverage of the show is partnered and sits in the category of placed coverage. Independent but promotional: listing sites repeat organiser material and the organiser's figures. Unconfirmed: preliminary figures of 400+ delegates and 80+ countries circulate in a regional defence magazine, which also exhibits at the show, so its reporting is not independent.
Anyone seeking a conference-led event on cyber or AI policy: the one conference is MESOC, a military commanders forum with its own 350 JOD badge and no published 2026 speaker list. Visitors with limited time on opening day: the Visitor badge has restricted access until 13:00 on the first day. Anyone expecting a self-serve registration: payment comes only after approval.
It is a biennial show held in the second half of the year, in September in 2024 and late October in 2026. The sourced pages do not compare it with other defence exhibitions, and the previous fiche's claims of being the largest dedicated special operations exhibition and following named shows were not confirmed.
Not found in the current pages. The 2024 edition was also in Aqaba. Earlier editions are reported in Amman (unverifiable information), and sources disagree on the founding year (1996 or 1999) (unverifiable information).
The website, registration and sponsor pages are in English, with an Arabic notice on the registration page. No statement on conference languages was found.
Not publicly disclosed. No livestream, hybrid access or recordings are mentioned for 2026. The mobile app and the SOFEX Connect login exist, but their functions are not described on the public pages.
Not publicly disclosed. The registration page says only that payment is required after the application is approved; no refund, cancellation or transfer terms were found ().
Not publicly disclosed. No accessibility statement was found on the official pages. A shuttle bus programme is published as a PDF that could not be read.
The venue is in Aqaba, Jordan's Red Sea port. The official travel partner, Nirvana Travel and Tourism, runs the accommodation, flights and car rental pages linked from the site, the official hotel is Cloud 7, and Royal Jordanian is the official carrier. A shuttle bus programme exists (PDF). Detailed directions to the centre are not on the pages read.
Because the organiser sells it separately and prices it above everything else: at 350 JOD it costs more than the Elite badge at 250 JOD and well above the 150 JOD non-Jordanian Visitor badge, while including the conference and the Elite benefits. The pricing treats the commanders conference as the senior tier of the show rather than a side session, which fits the site's description of MESOC as attended by high-ranking officials.
Because no 2026 attendance figure is published by the organiser. The homepage counters carry no year and match the 2024 edition, and the 400+ delegates, 80+ countries and 40 pavilion nations come from a magazine that is itself listed as an exhibitor, citing preliminary indicators. Headline numbers, including the 20,000 visitors on the counter, should be read as organiser claims.
Official site: https://www.sofexjordan.com/ (matches the database). As of 16 October 2026 it served the 2026 edition with registration, MESOC, exhibitor list, sponsors and services pages. Contacts: info@sofexjordan.com, marketing@sofexjordan.com (media and sponsorship), +962 6 562 7301. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sofexjo. The previous fiche cited an older alternative domain that returned no content; the current site is sofexjordan.com.