Among 8 fatalities are 6 American troops aboard a United States Army Black Hawk helicopter that pummeled on Tiran Island off the southern coast of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt on Thursday.
One US citizen reportedly survived the helicopter crash.
The military helicopter belonged to an international peacekeeping force. An Israeli and an Egyptian official stated the crash appeared to be an accident.
The crash transpired in the vicinity of Sharm el-Sheikh, according to the coalition in a statement. The names of involved people are being withheld pending the next of kin's notification.
According to the force, the helicopter crash involved a multi-national observer force. Alongside the six Americans who died are a Czech citizen and a French national.
"During a routine mission in the vicinity of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, nine members of the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) were involved in a helicopter crash. We are deeply saddened to report that eight uniformed MFO members were killed; six US citizens, one French, and one Czech," remarked the force in a statement, reported France 24.
According to officials, the suspected cause of the crash is a mechanical failure. An investigation is ongoing.
The United Nations peace mission released a statement, "At this point, there is no information to indicate the accident was nothing but an accident," reported Granthshala.
A 9th peacekeeper was severely injured in the Sinai Peninsula crash. He was reportedly an American.
The Multinational Force and Observers have yet to release the names of the fatalities, pending notification of the families.
According to a statement by the United Nations peacekeeping mission, "At this point, there is no information to indicate the crash was anything except an accident," reported FOX News.
As part of a UN peacekeeping mission that has been established since the signing of the peace treaty between Egypt and Israel in 1979, there are 30 to 400 American troops based in the Sinai.
The Multinational Force and Observers that owned the military helicopter is an international force that oversees the 40-year-old peace agreement.
Israeli and Egyptian officials remarked the sole survivor was being airlifted to a hospital in Israel.
The coalition force that initially reported the incident stated there is no information to conclude that the helicopter crash was not an accident.
The force consists of an estimated 1,150 personnel from 13 countries. Four hundred fifty of them are US citizens.
One United States official could not immediately confirm if the craft was a US helicopter and the Trump government is working to confirm information from the incident.
The Israeli army stated an Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) helicopter carrying elite search and rescue soldiers transported the injured American MFO peacekeeper for medical treatment. The peacekeeping force transferred the lone survivor into an Eilat resort where he was then carried by an Israeli copter to a northern hospital.
In recent years, security in the area has been aggravated in the midst of a campaign of violence being initiated by a local ISIS affiliate that has targeted government forces and civilians.
