Seven members of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) international peacekeeping organization were killed in a helicopter crash during a routine mission near Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Thursday. An eighth MFO member survived and is in critical condition. The names of the victims, five of whom were from the U.S., one from France, and one from the Czech Republic, have not yet been released.
“The MFO will conduct an investigation to determine the cause of the accident,” the organization said in a statement. “At this point, there is no information to indicate the crash was anything except an accident. We greatly appreciate the cooperation and support of Egypt and Israel.”
The helicopter is believed to have been an MFO-owned UH-60 Black Hawk. It has been reported that the aircraft suffered an unspecified technical failure prior to the crash. The MFO is an international peacekeeping force whose stated mission is to “supervise the implementation of the security provisions of the Egyptian-Israeli Treaty of Peace and employ best efforts to prevent any violation of its terms.”
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
