Seventeen soldiers were killed on Saturday when their helicopter crashed in southeastern Turkey, Turkish officials said.
The Sikorsky helicopter reportedly crashed on Herekol mountain, in the Pervari area of Siirt province, due to adverse weather conditions. Siirt Governor Ahmet Aydın said all of the soldiers aboard the helicopter were killed in the crash, Today’s Zaman reported.
Fourteen of the victims were members of gendarmerie special forces and the rest were helicopter staff, he said. The soldiers were being transferred to a region to help troops in their fight against the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
