Senegal helicopter crashes in C. African Republic, killing 3

DAKAR, Senegal – Three Senegalese soldiers died after their helicopter crashed in Central African Republic on Friday, Senegal’s armed forces said.

The air force helicopter was returning from an operational mission with the United Nations peacekeeping force when it crashed in the town of Bouar. Another person was badly wounded.

The U.N. mission said it appeared that poor atmospheric conditions had made a proper landing impossible.

The Senegalese were in contact with the U.N. to evacuate the wounded soldier and repatriate the bodies.

The helicopter is part of a Senegalese fleet working in Central African Republic, where large-scale violence began in 2013.

Armed groups currently control most of the country and carry out deadly attacks on displaced people’s camps and other communities despite a peace agreement.