Iraqi Army Helicopter Crash Kills Five

An Iraqi military helicopter lands near the al-Qaim border crossing between Syria and Iraq on November 1, 2018. (AFP)
An Iraqi military helicopter lands near the al-Qaim border crossing between Syria and Iraq on November 1, 2018. (AFP)
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Iraqi Army Helicopter Crash Kills Five

An Iraqi military helicopter lands near the al-Qaim border crossing between Syria and Iraq on November 1, 2018. (AFP)
An Iraqi military helicopter lands near the al-Qaim border crossing between Syria and Iraq on November 1, 2018. (AFP)

An Iraqi army helicopter crashed during a combat operation in northern Iraq on Thursday, killing all five crew members, the Iraqi military said in a statement.

The helicopter went down near the northern town of Amerli, 170 km (105 miles) north of Baghdad, said. It did not specify whether the helicopter crashed due to hostile fire or a technical malfunction.

Despite the defeat of ISIS in 2017, remnants of the group switched to hit-and-run attacks against government forces in different parts of Iraq.

Iraqi security forces have over the past months launched many operations in the area where the helicopter crashed to chase militants, military officials said.



Palestinian Health Ministry Says One Dead in Israel West Bank Raid

Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)
Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)
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Palestinian Health Ministry Says One Dead in Israel West Bank Raid

Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)
Demonstrators clash with Palestinian security forces in Nablus in the West Bank (File photo/Reuters)

The health ministry in the occupied West Bank said one person was killed and nine injured in an Israeli raid on a refugee camp, with the Israeli military saying Saturday it had opened fire at "terrorists".

An 18-year-old man, Muhammad Medhat Amin Amer, "was killed by bullets from the (Israeli) occupation in the Balata camp" in the territory's north, the Palestinian health ministry said in a late-night statement, adding that nine people were injured, "four of whom are in critical condition".

According to the Palestinian Red Crescent, the raid began on Friday night and triggered violent clashes, AFP reported.

The official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported that Israeli troops entered the camp from the Awarta checkpoint and "deployed snipers on the rooftops of surrounding buildings".

In a statement on Saturday, the Israeli military said that during the "counterterrorism" operation, "terrorists placed explosives in the area in order to harm (military) soldiers, hurled explosives, molotov cocktails, and rocks and shot fireworks at the forces".

"The forces fired toward the terrorists in order to remove the threat. Hits were identified," the statement said.

Violence in the West Bank has intensified since war broke out in the Gaza Strip after Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

Since then, at least 815 Palestinians have been killed in the territory by Israeli troops or settlers, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Ramallah.

In the same period, Palestinian attacks in the West Bank have killed at least 25 Israelis, according to official Israeli figures.

Israel has occupied the West Bank since conquering it in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.