“Unfortunately, the three crew members – an officer and non-commissioned officer of the Niger army and a foreign instructor – died (…) despite the efforts of the rescue crews to contain the fire,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
Three people died on Monday when a military helicopter at a base of Niger’s armed forces crashed on the runway of Niamey International Airport, the Ministry of Defense announced.
Yesterday “at around 10:40 (local time; 11:40 Greek time), an MI-17 helicopter of the armed forces of Niger returning from a routine training flight crashed while landing on the military runway of Niamey airport,” the ministry explained. in a press release obtained by AFP.
“Unfortunately, the three crew members – an officer and non-commissioned officer of the Niger army and a foreign instructor – died (…) despite the efforts of the rescue crews to contain the fire,” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
A commission of inquiry was formed “to determine the causes of this tragic accident,” the text added.
Niger, a very poor country in the Sahel, is preparing to “increase the strength” of its army, which has been fighting jihadist organizations in its vast territory since 2015.
Territories are affected in its western part, near Mali and Burkina Faso, where there are organizations that pledge allegiance to either Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State; while in its southeastern part, which is washed by Lake Chad and neighbors Nigeria , jihadists of Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa (ISW) find refuge.
The previously free border region of northern Benin and southern Niger has also been facing the jihadist threat for several months, authorities say.
In its weekly bulletin released on Monday, the Ministry of Defense said that “25 terrorists” were killed last week in an “airstrike” in the Tillaberi region (west, near Mali).
In the fight against jihadists, Niger receives support, in terms of supplies and training of its military, from France, the US, Italy, Germany and Belgium.
France and the US have military bases in Niger; Germany a logistics base.
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With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
