ISTANBUL: Four military personnel were killed when a helicopter crashed in eastern Turkiye for reasons that remain unclear, the defense ministry said on Thursday.

“Four of our heroic comrades-in-arms on board were martyred when our S-70 helicopter crashed in Malatya for reasons that have not yet been determined,” the ministry said in a statement.

The wreckage was located and search-and-rescue operations launched immediately after the crash, it added.

The ministry offered condolences to the families of the victims.