According to authorities, the highest army commander of Nigeria, LieutenantGeneral Ibrahim Attahiru link,and other military officers were killed when their plane crashed in thecountry’s north.

The collision happened on Friday as the plane was landing at the KadunaInternational Airport “due to inclement weather,” according to the armedforces, who said that the accident “claimed the lives of 10 other officersand the crew.”

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There was no immediate word about what triggered the plane accident, butBrigadier General Mohammed Yerima promised that further specifics would beforthcoming shortly. The identities of the other military officers who diedhave not been revealed.

President Muhammadu Buhari named Chief of Army Staff Attahiru in January aspart of a shake-up of the top military command in order to help combatrising crime, including the more than decade-long war against the BokoHaram armed group.

Buhari, a retired general who was first elected in 2015, has come undergrowing criticism from both supporters and opponents over his government’smanagement of the country’s escalating security issues.

The president said in a statement that the crash “was one mortal blow toour underbelly, at a time while our armed forces are poised to end thecountry’s security challenges.”

On Twitter, the US diplomatic mission in Nigeria described Attahiru’s deathas a “tremendous loss to Nigeria,” saying, “We join Nigerians in mourningthe horrific loss of life from today’s plane crash.”

Nigeria’s military has been fighting Boko Haram in the northeast since2009, in a war that has killed over 40,000 people and forced two millionpeople to flee their homes.