Helicopter crash kills 2 soldiers in SW Algeria

By Abdul Razzaq bin Abdullah

ALGIERS

Two soldiers have been killed and another injured when an Algerian gendarmerie helicopter crashed southwest of the capital, according to local media.

The incident took place when the helicopter was on a routine patrol late Tuesday in Naama province’s El Kasdir area, Al Nahar TV reported.

Algerian authorities have yet to comment over the incident.

For its part, Echorouk TV confirmed that the helicopter belongs to the Border Control Division of the National Gendarmerie, a military branch of the Ministry of Defense responsible for watching the border.

"Civil defense units intervened to evacuate the victims and extinguish the fire," the television channel reported.

This is the second incident of its kind within a month as on May 21, the Ministry of Defense announced the death of three soldiers in an army helicopter crash in the province of Tipaza after hitting a high voltage electric post.