13 soldiers die in helicopter collision

PARIS: France will never secure total victory over Islamist insurgents in West Africa, its top general said on Wednesday, after 13 soldiers died in a helicopter crash, during a combat mission in Mali – France’s worst single loss of troops in 36 years.

General Francois Lecointre said France’s military role, in the Sahel region, south of the Sahara, was “necessary” but it was hard to see when the war would be won.

The two black boxes from the helicopters have been recovered, military officials said. Defence minister Florence Parly arrived in Mali to pay tribute to the soldiers who died.