Military helicopter crash killed and injured 13 soldiers

Military helicopter crash killed and injured 13 soldiers

ISTANBUL – A military helicopter crashed in southeast Turkey, killing nine soldiers and injuring four, the defence ministry said on Thursday.

The helicopter took off from the Bingol province at 1055 GMT, it said in a statement, adding that search operations were launched after it lost contact at 1125 GMT.

It described the crash as accidental, but did not elaborate. The four injured soldiers were being taken to hospital, the ministry added.

Reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen and Yesim Dikmen; Editing by Dominic Evans