Seven members of the Multinational Observer Force (FMO) in the Egyptian Sinai, including five Americans, a French and a Czech, were killed, Thursday, November 12, in the crash of their helicopter in the south of the peninsula.

"We are deeply saddened by the loss of seven of our military colleagues from three countries, who died in a helicopter crash during a routine mission. The toll includes a Czech, a French and five American members of the FMO", The force said late Thursday night in a statement.

A previous report reported eight dead, including six Americans.

An American member of this force charged with monitoring the peace between Israel and Egypt survived the crash and was evacuated for treatment, according to a statement from the FMO, which specifies that the accident took place during a "routine mission near Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt".

"The FMO will conduct an investigation to determine the cause of the accident," the statement continued, according to which "at this stage, there is no information indicating that the crash was not an accident".

In Prague, the Czech army said in a statement that "the cause of the crash is a technical incident".

Cooperation between Egypt and Israel

FMO refers to "cooperative efforts between Egypt and Israel" following the crash.

The Israeli military has "offered to provide immediate medical aid," said spokesperson Jonathan Conricus.

An army helicopter "with elite soldiers specializing in rescue was dispatched to Ramon airport (southern Israel)," he added.

The Israeli army says it offered medical assistance and evacuated the American member of the force injured in the accident to a hospital in Israel.

On Twitter, the President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden, sent his "sincere condolences to the relatives of the peacekeepers", "died on the island of Tiran", and also wished "a speedy recovery to the American survivor ".

I extend my deep condolences to the loved ones of the peacekeepers, including 6 American service members, who died on Tiran Island, and wish a speedy recovery to the surviving American.

I join all Americans in honoring their sacrifice, as I keep their loved ones in my prayers.

- Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) November 12, 2020

Emmanuel Macron said in a statement to have "learned with great sadness of the death of Lieutenant-Colonel Sébastien Botta, French officer engaged in operations in Sinai within the FMO".

“On behalf of Les Aviatrices et des Aviateurs, I offer my sincere condolences to the family and relatives of Lieutenant-Colonel Sébastien Botta, who died in operations in the service of France.

United to Face.

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- General Philippe Lavigne, CEMAAE pic.twitter.com/9bKQLmNpl6

- French Air Force and Space (@Armee_de_lair) November 12, 2020

The French president sent "a message of solidarity and compassion to the states struck by this tragedy, which painfully underscores the commitment of our soldiers to the service of peace in this region for nearly 40 years".

Three years after signing their peace treaty and after the UN announced that it would not provide peacekeepers for Sinai, Egypt and Israel, with the active support of the United States, had established this force deployed in 1982 as an independent international peacekeeping organization.

It currently has just over 1,100 soldiers of various nationalities, including Australia, the United States, Canada and France.

Sinai had been the scene of clashes between the Hebrew state and Egypt before the two countries signed a peace agreement in 1979. Today, various armed groups are rife in the peninsula, including the local branch of the organization. jihadist Islamic State.

Egyptian security forces are fighting an Islamist insurgency that has hardened in northeast Sinai.

In February 2018, the Egyptian authorities launched a large-scale operation against Islamist militants, mainly in northern Sinai, not far from Israel and the Palestinian Gaza Strip.

Since the start of this operation, around 930 suspected Islamist fighters have been killed along with dozens of security personnel, according to Egyptian military data.

With AFP

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