By Ochiaka Ugwu with Agency Report
Four members of the Qatari armed forces and three Turkish citizens have died in a helicopter crash due to technical snag amidst the ongoing war in the Middle East.
Authorities announced Sunday that all seven on board a Qatari military helicopter, including three Turkish nationals, were killed in the crash, which occurred in the Gulf state’s territorial waters.
The Qatari and Turkish defence ministries on Sunday said the helicopter had crashed after suffering a technical malfunction, which the Qatari ministry said was during “routine duty”.
Four of those killed were Qatari armed forces personnel, one was from the Qatar-Turkey joint forces and two were technicians, the Turkish and Qatari defence ministries said.
According to Qatar’s Defence Ministry, the deceased were the pilot, Captain Mubarak Salem Daway al-Marri, Sergeant Fahad Hadi Ghanem al-Khayarin, Corporal Mohammed Maher Mohammed and Captain Saeed Nasser Samekh, all from Qatar Armed Forces; Major Sinan Tastekin of Qatar-Turkiye Joint Forces, and Turkish civilian collaborators Suleiman Cemra Kahraman and Ismail Anas Can.
The ministry extended “its sincere condolences” to the families of the victims.
The Turkish Ministry of National Defence also said in a statement that one of its soldiers and two personnel from Turkish defence firm Aselsan were killed in the helicopter crash, adding the aircraft had crashed due to a technical issue during a training flight.
The statement added that Qatari authorities would carry out inspections to determine the exact cause of the crash.
No immediate information was available on the cause beyond the technical malfunction, and there was no indication that the crash was the result of hostile action.
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