Six Americans were said to be among the dead in a crash near Sharm el-Sheikh, apparently due to technical failure
A helicopter with U-O- said the multinational force and observers in the Egyptian Sinai crashed Thursday near the resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, killing eight peacekeepers
The multinational force and the observers said in a statement that the dead were six Americans, a French and a Czech, all of them military service personnel. She added that one of the members of the American force survived and was medically evacuated
The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit confirmed that the army sent a helicopter and rescued the only survivor of the accident and transported him to an Israeli hospital for treatment
An Egyptian official said that the UH-60 Black Hawk was on a reconnaissance mission and crashed near Tiran Island, apparently due to technical failure
An official familiar with the accident, whose name or nationality could not be determined, told Reuters that it was an accident caused by a mechanical failure.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media on the matter
The multinational force was established to monitor disarmament in Sinai under the 1979 Egyptian-Israeli Peace Agreement and has decreased in size in recent years as neighboring countries intensified security cooperation against Sinai rebels led by Islamists
However, both Israel and Egypt have, in the past, opposed Washington’s proposals to reduce the size of the United States’ participation in the multinational force, whose website lists about 452 Americans out of the force’s 1,154 military personnel, thirteen countries contributing troops to the force: Australia, Canada, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Fiji, France, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Britain, Uruguay, and the United States is the largest power It is headquartered in Rome
Cairo considers the multinational force as part of the relationship with Israel, which, although unpopular with many Egyptians, has brought it billions of dollars in the United States.O Defensive assistance, desalination of the disarmament imposed by foreign parties on the sovereign lands of Sinai
With regard to Israel, the multinational force and observers provide strategic reassurance in a region where loyalties can change, noting that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi overthrew an elected Islamist government hostile to its neighbor in 2013.In a statement of condolence, Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi described the multiple force Nationalities as « extremely important to maintain security and stability »
The multinational force statement said that the helicopter was on a « routine » mission when it crashed, and the Israeli army said in a statement that it had offered to send a rescue team to the scene
According to its website, the Multinational Force and Observers attract individuals from 13 countries and cover an area of more than 10,000 square kilometers (3,860 square miles) in the Sinai.
Send me email alerts for new articles by The Associated Press
Want to enjoy reading « Zen » – without ads and just article?
Subscribe today
Sign in
To join the conversation
Your comment has been submitted successfully and will be published on
According to the site policy
If you wish to be notified when your comment was published,
Please fill in your email address in the form below
Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz in Israel, and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides comprehensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish world and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and the Palestinian Authority. And the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world, and Jewish life in Israel and the diaspora
Egypt, Sinai Peninsula, Peacekeeping, Multinational Force and Observers, Helicopter, Israel
World News – CA – Eight peacekeepers were killed in helicopter crash in Sinai
SOURCE: https://www.w24news.com
