LIVE UPDATES
According to police accounts, a military helicopter in Kenya that was transporting senior officials—including the head of defense—crash-landed and killed everyone within.
Following the event that took place in Elgeyo Marakwet County, around 400 kilometers northwest of Nairobi, President William Ruto promptly convened an emergency meeting of the National Security Council even as he grieved over the incident.
The Chief of the Defense Forces, General Francis Omondi Ogolla, was among the dead.
He and a few other top commanders were in the chopper. When the plane crashed, a senior police officer told AFP that it caught fire.
The purpose of their mission was related to security, as Kenya Defence Forces soldiers are deployed in the region.
“The helicopter burst into flames after crashing and it had more than 10 senior commanders on board, including General Ogolla,” the officer said.
“They were in the area on a security mission because there are Kenya Defence Forces soldiers deployed in the region,” he said.
Initial reports did not provide details on casualties, but President Ruto later confirmed that General Ogolla and nine other senior military officers lost their lives in the crash, with only two survivors.
“President William Ruto has convened an urgent meeting of the National Security Council at State House, Nairobi this evening, following a Kenya Defence Forces’ helicopter crash this afternoon in Elgeyo-Marakwet County,” State House spokesman, Hussein Mohamed, said in a statement.
