Friday, March 29, 2024

Baghdad

URGENT: Yazidi politican, 20 others survive helicopter crash while aiding refugees on Sinjar mountain

Yazidi MP, Vian Dakhil. File photo.
Yazidi MP, Vian Dakhil. File photo.

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) The commander of the Kurdish Peshmerga forces announced on Tuesday the death of the pilot of the helicopter that crashed in the district of Sinjar and that the helicopter was carrying 20 people, including the MP Vian Dakhil.

Brigadier General Sami Bousali said, in an interview for IraqiNews.com, that “The helicopter was bringing humanitarian aid to the district of Sinjar, west of Mosul,” noting that “after unloading, the helicopter tried to evacuate, but crashed within three meters due to a technical fault, resulting in the death the pilot of the helicopter. ”

Sami Bousali added that “the helicopter was carrying 20 people, including the Member of Parliament of the Yezidi community, Vian Dakhil, who survived the crash but sustained injuries.”

The 20 on board who were wounded included Vian Dakhil, a Kurdish-Yazidi MP in the Iraqi parliament and Yadgar Mirani, a member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the source said.

The injured were flown to Zakho hospitals.

A spokesman for the Office of the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, Qassim Atta announced, earlier today, that the Russian-made Mi-17 helicopter belonged to the Iraqi army and crashed due to “a technical fault.”

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