One South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldier was shot dead and injured when their helicopter was ambushed in Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday. The soldiers are deployed in the war torn Central African country on a peace keeping mission.
THE ATTACK
In a media statement, SANDF spokesperson Sphiwe Dlamini said the crew members had taken off in an Oryx helicopter from Beni and were about to land at the Goma Airport when they were attacked. Dlamini said even though the surviving SANDF member who is a pilot was badly injured, he managed to land safely. "A crew member was fatally shot, another suffered injuries but managed to continue flying the chopper and landed safely at Goma Airport," said Dlamini.
FAMILIES NOT INFORMED YET
Dlamini said even though the reportsare already out in the media, the families of the crew members have not beenformally notified of the incident. "We are in the process of letting thefamilies know according to our standard procedure. All other details will becommunicated in due course," he added. The crew was part of three groups thatwere deployed to DRC amidst the ongoing conflict in the country. Ministerof Defence Thandi Modise, her deputy, Thabang Makwetla, the Acting Secretaryfor Defence, Thobekile Gamede, and the Chief of SANDF, General RudzaniMaphwanya, sends their condolences to the family of the deceased and wish thewounded soldier a speedy recovery.
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