Doha: At least six persons were killed after a Qatari helicopter crashed in the country’s territorial waters in the Persian Gulf on Sunday.
While six bodies have been retrieved, a search is on for a seventh occupant of the aircraft.
While no details of the make of the helicopter or the identities of the pilots and passengers were given, sources confirmed that it belonged to the military.
Defence ministry officials have only said that the helicopter suffered some technical issues while on a routine mission.
The incident comes at a time when the region has turned into a conflict zone with Iran targetting US assets in the Gulf countries. This is in response to continued strikes on Iran by the US and Israel since February 28.
The attacks on Iran killed the country’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
However, there is nothing to link the helicopter crash with the ongoing conflict till now.
“A Qatari helicopter had a technical malfunction during a routine duty, which led to its crash in the regional waters of the state,” the country’s defence ministry wrote in an X post.
The Ministry of Interior also announced continuing search operations.
“The Ministry of Interior announces that its specialised teams are conducting search and rescue operations in the country’s territorial waters following a helicopter crash reported by the Ministry of Defence. These operations are being carried out in close coordination with the Maritime Search and Rescue Team of the General Directorate of Coasts and Borders Security, as well as the Qatar International Search and Rescue Group of the Internal Security Force,” it posted.
