Colombian Mi-17 helicopter Crashes, 9 Soldiers killed

An Mi-17 helicopter of the Colombian army crashed in rural northern Colombia on Monday, killing nine soldiers, according to the country's armed forces.

In a statement, the Colombian military said the helicopter was taking the supplies lost communication with the base early in the afternoon and was later found to have crashed near municipality of Santa Rosa del Sur, an area that has recently experienced fighting between the National Liberation Army guerrilla group and the drug trafficking group known as the Gulf Clan.

The military statement described the helicopter crash as an accident and the helicopter crashed around 1:50 pm local time. It was an MI-17 Russian-built chopper that is often used to carry troops and supplies.

“I regret the death of the nine passengers on board the army’s helicopter” Colombian president Gustavo Petro wrote on X on Monday.“It was supplying troop that were conducting operations against the Gulf Clan.”

Colombia has had issues servicing its Mi-17 helicopters due to sanctions against Russia that has prevented the flow of spares and maintenance personnel.

Of late, the US has been pressuring Colombia to sell its Russian helicopters for use in Ukraine and opt for American ones instead.