Kenyan military helicopter crashes, five soldiers killed, police say

A Kenyan military helicopter crashed in the west of the country, killing five soldiers inside on Thursday, a police source said.

Three other soldiers on the helicopter were injured and taken to hospital, the police source said, asking not to be named. The helicopter came down in Elgeyo-Marakwet county, the president's spokesman said, without going into detail on any casualties

"President William Ruto convened an urgent meeting of the National Security Council at State House Nairobi this evening following a Kenya Defence Forces' helicopter crash this afternoon," Hussein Mohamed wrote on X. A statement about the crash would be issued soon, government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura said on social media.

Defence minister Aden Duale did not respond to Reuters' calls to his telephone. At least ten soldiers were killed in June 2021 when their helicopter crashed while landing near the capital Nairobi.

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