World news – CA – Officials: 7 peacekeepers were killed in a helicopter crash in Sinai

An Israeli and Egyptian official said that a helicopter belonging to an international peacekeeping force had crashed in the Egyptian Sinai Peninsula on Thursday, killing at least seven people, including several Americans.
The Israeli official said that five Americans were among the dead in the plane crash in Sinai. The other victims were French and Czechs. The official said that Israel initially sent a helicopter to rescue the wounded, but canceled the mission after confirming the deaths.
The Egyptian official said that the UH-60 Black Hawk was on a reconnaissance mission and crashed near Tiran Island, apparently due to a technical malfunction
The helicopter belongs to the Multinational Force and Observers, an international force known as the MFO that monitors the 40-year-old peace agreement between Israel and Egypt. Thirteen countries contribute troops to the mission, and the United States is the largest
The multinational force officials and observers said an investigation was underway, but they gave no further details
The Israeli and Egyptian official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media about this matter.

Tehran, Iran: On Thursday, Iran has passed the bleak phase of 40,000 deaths from the Coronavirus, with the last 10,000 deaths added in less than a month, as the country struggles to contain the most widespread wave of infections so far
The Iranian Ministry of Health announced 457 new deaths on Thursday, along with 117,517 new infections, bringing the total number of cases to more than 726,000, although officials warned that this number is much lower.
The death toll has risen in recent weeks, shattering records in the country that has suffered for months from the worst outbreak in the Middle East.
Nearly half of Iran’s coronavirus deaths have been recorded in the capital, Tehran, according to health officials, as medical workers have warned that the health system may soon be overwhelmed and demanded a strict one-month lockdown in all provincial capitals to slow the spread of the virus.
But the government has resisted the lockdown, in a desperate attempt to save an economy torn apart by unprecedented US sanctions that are effectively preventing Iran from selling its oil internationally. The Trump administration re-imposed sanctions in 2018 after withdrawing from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers
Earlier this week, authorities ordered a month-long curfew to work in Tehran and 30 other major cities and towns, and required non-essential stores to keep their workers at home. However, implementation in the sprawling capital remains a challenge
As deaths continue to rise without end in sight, authorities have come under pressure. Deputy Health Minister Qassem Janbabai told the semi-official Tasnim news agency that the National Coronavirus Task Force will study a nationwide two-week lockdown proposal this weekend

Egypt, the Sinai Peninsula, Israel, a helicopter