KABUL: Senior U.S. military officials have confirmed that at least four special forces personnel were killed following the crash of a military helicopter.
According to CBS News, the incident occurred on Friday night in a rural area near Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington State.
The casualties were members of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) of the U.S. Army.
In a statement Jonathan Braga, Commander of U.S. Special Operations, expressed, “Our hearts are with the families, friends, and comrades of these Night Stalkers. They were elite warriors who embodied the highest values of the Army and special operations, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten.
The crashed helicopter was identified as an MH-60 Black Hawk of the U.S. Army.
The cause of the crash remains unknown, and efforts to recover the wreckage and locate the bodies of the victims are ongoing.
Joint Base Lewis-McChord is located southwest of the city of Tacoma in Washington State.