Europeupdated 1h ago2 min read
MapItalian CH-47 Chinook Crash Kills Four in EUFOR Training Near Brčko, Bosnia
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Four Italian personnel killed and 11 injured when a CH-47 Chinook EUFOR crash near Brčko. It was conducting routine training as part of EUFOR Althea.
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Crash in Bosnia
An Italian CH-47 Chinook helicopter operating under the European Union Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina crashed during a routine training operation near Brčko, in the Gorice area, leaving four people dead and 11 others injured, according to EUFOR and Italy's Defence ministry. Salih Ibrahimbegovic, spokesman for Brčko hospital, said, "There were a total of 15 people on board the helicopter," and he added that three died in the crash and a fourth later succumbed to injuries in hospital.
EUFOR said the crash happened in a region about 180 kilometres north of Sarajevo and that "no civilian infrastructure, property, or vehicles were damaged, and there were no injuries to civilians." EUFOR also said it was conducting a full and thorough investigation and would release more information as it was verified, while local media published photos of the wreckage in a flat, grassy field.
Conflicting death counts
ABC News described the same EUFOR helicopter crash as reportedly killing 3 and injuring 12, citing a statement from the force and officials who told local media in Bosnia that three people died and 12 were injured. El Mundo later described the death toll as four, saying the mayor of the Brko district reported three dead and 12 injured and that the death of another person admitted in critical condition was subsequently confirmed.
EUFOR urged the public to avoid spreading misinformation or speculating about the identities and nationalities of the personnel involved, and it said further updates would be released once information was verified. Euronews reported that EUFOR said four crew members had been killed and 11 were injured, while Brčko district mayor Siniša Milić said three people had died and 12 had been injured, with one injured in critical condition.
Italy and EU solidarity
Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said, "In this time of profound grief, my first thoughts go to the families of our fallen soldiers," extending condolences to the families of the victims. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her grief in a post on X, writing, "My thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all those who, as part of the mission to promote peace and stability in the region."
“My thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all those who, as part of the mission to promote peace and stability in the region.”
EUFOR said the helicopter was conducting routine training and that it was under a UN Security Council mandate, with the mission taking over from NATO in 2004 to help maintain security and oversee military provisions of a peace agreement. EUFOR also stated that its roughly 1,200-strong mission has operated in Bosnia since 2004 and that the crash did not cause damage to civilian infrastructure, property, or vehicles, while authorities awaited more precise information about the state of health of the personnel.