At least four Moldovan nationals were killed Saturday when a cargo plane crashed into the sea off the Ivory Coast, according to the Ivorian security minister.
Minister Sidiki Diakite told reporters six other people were injured, including four French citizens. Several security sources said they were members of the French military.
A French military source told AFP the aircraft had been chartered by the French army as part of Operation Barkhane, an anti-jihadist operation in Africa’s Sahel region.
The plane was carrying French military cargo, according to a spokesman for French forces in the Ivory Coast who identified himself only as Lt. Villain — citing French protocol.
Police said there were 10 people aboard the propeller plane, which crashed into the sea near the international airport in the main city of Abidjan during a powerful thunderstorm.
“The aircraft failed to land and crashed in the water,” police commissioner Charlemagne Bleu said.
Hindered by rough seas, firefighters and rescue divers removed bodies from the plane which had broken apart and settled near the beach.
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