9 peacekeepers die in Sinai plane crash
By MAAMOUN YOUSSEF OTHMAN,
Associated Press Writer
27 minutes ago
CAIRO, Egypt - As many as nine foreign peacekeepers, including up to eight French soldiers, were killed Sunday when a French plane attached to the Sinai's multinational peacekeeping force crashed in a remote, mountainous area of the desert, the force's spokesman said.
Officials said they believed there were no survivors.
More soldiers than usual were aboard the aircraft at the time of the crash because it was on a training mission, said force spokesman Normand St. Pierre. Officials were still trying to determine the nationalities of all the victims.
The crash occurred in sunny, clear weather between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. local time, almost exactly in the middle of the vast Sinai Peninsula, about 30 miles from a town called Nakhl, police said.
The peacekeeping force, officially called the Multinational Force & Observers, is an independent international organization created by Egypt and Israel to monitor their border in the Sinai after a 1979 peace deal.
It currently includes forces from the United States, France, Australia, Canada, Colombia, Fiji, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand and Uruguay, plus a few officers from Norway.
The French-made DeHavilland DHC-6 Twin Otter plane crashed after taking off from the multinational force's El Gorah base — the northern headquarters of the peacekeeping mission, St. Pierre said.
St. Pierre said at least eight French forces died, and also one other soldier from another foreign contingent of the peacekeeping force.
He said it was unclear how many people in all were aboard the Twin Otter, but other local officials said only the nine who died were aboard — four crew and five passengers.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070506/ap_ ... RRhRgUewgF
9 peacekeepers die in Sinai plane crash
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Plane crashes in Egypt's Sinai, three dead
ISMAILIA, Egypt (Reuters) - A plane belonging to the multinational observer force that monitors the Egyptian-Israeli border crashed on Sunday in the Sinai peninsula, killing at least three people, security sources said.
The sources said the aircraft crashed on a road and hit a truck, which exploded. Three burned bodies thought to be from the plane were found in the wreckage.
The source said the driver of the truck had jumped from his vehicle and was believed to have survived. The cause of the crash was not immediately known.
One security source said there were at least eight people on board, all French nationals. Three were confirmed dead, the fate of the others was unknown at this time.
A French defence ministry spokesman said the aircraft, a small plane called a Twin Otter, was "very likely" French. He was unable to confirm the number of victims or the cause of the crash.
An employee of the multinational forces office reached in Cairo confirmed the crash but declined to give any details. Senior officials from the force were not available for comment.
Security sources said the plane had been heading from El-Gorah in northern Sinai to Saint Catherine in the south. There was contradictory information on exactly how soon after take-off the plane went down.
One security source said it had lost contact with air traffic control shortly after take-off, and was presumed to have crashed then. Another source said it had crashed toward the end of its trip.
The Multinational Force and Observers mission was set up to supervise security provisions in the 1979 peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. The force has contingents from 11 countries: Australia, Canada, Colombia, Fiji, France, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, the United States and Uruguay.
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNew ... 6920070506
ISMAILIA, Egypt (Reuters) - A plane belonging to the multinational observer force that monitors the Egyptian-Israeli border crashed on Sunday in the Sinai peninsula, killing at least three people, security sources said.
The sources said the aircraft crashed on a road and hit a truck, which exploded. Three burned bodies thought to be from the plane were found in the wreckage.
The source said the driver of the truck had jumped from his vehicle and was believed to have survived. The cause of the crash was not immediately known.
One security source said there were at least eight people on board, all French nationals. Three were confirmed dead, the fate of the others was unknown at this time.
A French defence ministry spokesman said the aircraft, a small plane called a Twin Otter, was "very likely" French. He was unable to confirm the number of victims or the cause of the crash.
An employee of the multinational forces office reached in Cairo confirmed the crash but declined to give any details. Senior officials from the force were not available for comment.
Security sources said the plane had been heading from El-Gorah in northern Sinai to Saint Catherine in the south. There was contradictory information on exactly how soon after take-off the plane went down.
One security source said it had lost contact with air traffic control shortly after take-off, and was presumed to have crashed then. Another source said it had crashed toward the end of its trip.
The Multinational Force and Observers mission was set up to supervise security provisions in the 1979 peace treaty between Egypt and Israel. The force has contingents from 11 countries: Australia, Canada, Colombia, Fiji, France, Hungary, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, the United States and Uruguay.
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNew ... 6920070506
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homeofthebrave
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Woah!The sources said the aircraft crashed on a road and hit a truck, which exploded. Three burned bodies thought to be from the plane were found in the wreckage.
The source said the driver of the truck had jumped from his vehicle and was believed to have survived. The cause of the crash was not immediately known.
Sounds like something out of a movie!