French soldiers were killed during an operation against jihadists in Mali on Monday, Reuters news agency writes. Two helicopters must have collided accidentally, writes Le Figaro.
"With the greatest respect to the memory of these soldiers from the army, six officers, six sub-officers and a corporal, fallen in an operation and killed France in the fierce fight against terrorism in the Sahel," writes French President Emmanuel Macron in a statement.
The accident is the only and biggest since French troops entered the region in 2013.
France has over 4,500 soldiers trying to counter Islamist insurgency in the Sahel region.
The text is updated.