Tragedy Strikes: Kenya’s Defense Chief and 9 Officers Killed in Military Helicopter Crash, 2 Survivors Miraculously Escape

Tragic Helicopter Crash Claims Lives of Kenya’s Defense Chief and Top ⁣Military Personnel

President ‍William Ruto of‌ Kenya announced the devastating news of the ⁣death⁢ of General Francis Omondi Ogolla and nine other high-ranking⁣ military officials in a helicopter crash. The incident occurred in a remote area of‍ the country, leaving a deep sense of loss and mourning.

    
Details of the Incident
     
According to President Ruto, the tragic accident took place at 2:20 pm, resulting in the loss of the distinguished General Ogolla and nine other brave military personnel. The crash occurred in Elgeyo Marakwet county, approximately 250 miles northwest of Nairobi.
      
Investigation and Response
     
The Kenya Air Force has initiated an investigation to determine the cause of the crash. President Ruto expressed his sorrow over the loss of the general and declared three days of national mourning, with flags flying at half-mast.
      
General Ogolla's Legacy
     
General Ogolla, aged 61, was on a mission to visit troops in the North Rift area as part of Operation Maliza Uhalifu. His extensive military career and leadership roles have left a lasting impact on the nation.
      
Security Challenges in Kenya
     
Kenyan authorities have been combating insecurity in the Rift Valley region, facing threats from armed bandits and cattle rustlers. The presence of military forces in the area highlights the ongoing security concerns.
      
Remembering General Ogolla
     
Despite past political differences, President Ruto acknowledged General Ogolla's expertise and dedication to serving the country. The general's military achievements and international training background have been recognized and celebrated.
      
Tragic History Repeats
     
This unfortunate incident marks the second time in recent years that a helicopter crash has claimed the lives of military personnel in Kenya. The country mourns the loss of these brave individuals who sacrificed their lives in service.
      
Conclusion
     
The memory of General Francis Omondi Ogolla and the other fallen military personnel will forever be honored in Kenya's history. Their commitment to national security and defense will be remembered with respect and gratitude.
      
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
 

The world military today (April 18, 2024) has the following information: Iran shows off its military power as tensions with Israel increase, India still ensures spare parts for weapons and equipment produced by Russia produces, Belarus receives Mi-35M combat helicopter.

* Iran shows off its military power as tensions with Israel increase

On April 17, Iran held a large military parade, showing off its military power after launching a retaliatory attack with missiles and drones on Israel. According to Aljazeera, the parade is a move to show that Iran is ready to respond to any escalatory actions, if any.

Also on April 17, President Ebrahim Raisi said at a military base on the outskirts of Tehran: “This operation (retaliation attack) shows that our armed forces are ready.” .

The grand parade on April 17 featured many types of Iranian weapons and military equipment such as Ababil, Arash and Mohajer drones as well as Dezful medium-range ballistic missiles and air defense missile systems. no S-300. Below are some pictures of the parade.

Iran shows off its military might as tensions with Israel increase. Photo: Aljazeera Iran’s missiles appeared in the parade. Photo: Aljazeera Truck carrying UAV Kaman during the parade. Photo: Aljazeera

* India still ensures spare parts for Russian-made weapons and equipment

According to Indian Air Force General VR Chaudhary, the conflict in Ukraine has virtually no impact on the supply of spare parts for Russian-made aircraft currently used by the Indian Air Force. This is because India has “localized” spare parts for Russian-made weapons. In other words, India is now producing more and more spare parts for aircraft imported from the former Soviet Union and Russia today.

According to Bulgarian Military, to face the difficulty of spare parts, India has designed and is implementing a solution to promote the responsibility of domestic industries in the production of essential components for defense. Previously, there were predictions that India would have a solution to minimize the impact of the Russia-Ukraine conflict on the supply of spare parts for weapons and military equipment originating from Russia through Apply a strong and long-term “localization” strategy to minimize dependence on Russia’s defense supply chain.

India still ensures spare parts for Russian-made weapons and equipment. Photo: Bulgarian Military

In addition, New Delhi continues to receive a number of weapons from Russia according to previously signed contracts. Most recently, India received a batch of 24 Igla-S shoulder-mounted air defense missile launch systems and 100 missile bullets for this system out of a total of 100 launch systems and 400 missile bullets as signed in the order.

Experts say that India can still meet its domestic needs and minimize the negative impact of the conflict in Ukraine even if the conflict continues into 2025 and beyond. This was largely achieved due to the production licensing contract signed between Russia and India. In addition, the two countries continue to cooperate in the production of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles.

However, not all factors are as favorable as General Chaudhary said. Some systems purchased from Russia still face shortages in the supply of spare parts, including spare parts for the Il-76 transport aircraft and delays in the delivery of the S-400 Triumph missile defense system. .

* Belarus received Mi-35M combat helicopters

According to Army Recognition, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense published photos at Machulishchi air base, announcing the receipt of 4 Mi-35M helicopters. With four new Mi-35M helicopters, Belarus completed the delivery of the first batch at the same base.

Belarus received modernized Mi-35M combat helicopters. Photo: Ministry of Defense of Belarus

Equipped with the latest missile detection and warning technology, the Mi-35M helicopter will help strengthen Belarus’s airlift and troop transport capabilities in the context of Belarus’s Mi-24 helicopter fleet being deployed. It came into use in 1974 and is about to expire. At the beginning of the 21st century, after extensive modernization, the Mi-35M helicopter was born. The Mi-35M differs from the classic Mi-24 in its fixed landing gear, which helps reduce the weight of the helicopter; The main rotor system and tail balance rotor at the rear are also shorter and the Mi-35M’s guidance and firing element retrieval system can operate in all weather conditions.

The Mi-35M is also equipped with a powerful VK-2500 engine and a modern electronic warfare system, which can operate day and night. The automatic terrain tracking system on the aircraft ensures that the Mi-35M can approach the target without being detected. The main armament on the Mi-35M includes guided anti-tank missiles “Sturm-V” or “Ataka-M”, unguided missiles S-8 and S-13, and twin-barrel GSh-23 23 mm cannon. Recently, the Mi-35M has also been equipped with the L-370 missile warning system.

HUU DUONG (synthetic)

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On Saturday, April 27, journalists from prominent news outlets are invited to join U.S. President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and other Biden administration officials at the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner. The event takes place as the Biden administration continues to send weapons to Israel to continue its genocide in Gaza, which has to date killed more than 33,000 Palestinians, including over 125 Palestinian journalists.

Palestinian journalists from Gaza have put out an urgent appeal to their fellow journalists in the U.S. and across the world to stand with their colleagues in Gaza and refuse to whitewash Biden’s complicity in genocide by publicly boycotting the dinner. It is unacceptable and unethical for journalists to attend a dinner to cozy up to the Biden administration while it supports a regime that is targeting their colleagues for doing their jobs.

Stand in solidarity with journalists in Gaza and endorse their call to boycott the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

In the past six months alone, the Israeli military has executed over 125 Palestinian journalists in Gaza — 10 percent of Gaza’s community of journalists. The year 2023 marked the bloodiest year for journalists worldwide in over a decade, with over 75 percent of killed journalists targeted by Israel’s attacks on Gaza.

As Palestinian journalists, we urgently appeal to you, our colleagues globally, with a demand for immediate and unwavering action against the Biden administration’s ongoing complicity in the systematic slaughter and persecution of journalists in Gaza. We insist you publicly boycott the upcoming White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 27 as an act of solidarity with us — your fellow journalists — as well as with the millions of Palestinians currently being starved in Gaza due to the Biden administration’s continued political, financial, and military backing of Israel and cut-off of funding for live-saving humanitarian aid.

As Palestinian journalists who have been reporting from the ground in Gaza, we bear the enormous burden of exposing the realities of Israel’s genocidal campaign to the world while living through it in real time. Israel has killed more than 33,000 Palestinians as we watch on.

The toll exacted on us for merely fulfilling our journalistic duties is staggering. We are subjected to detentions, interrogations, and torture by the Israeli military, all for the ‘crime’ of journalistic integrity. More than 1,500 Palestinian journalists in Gaza have been displaced multiple times after our neighborhoods, homes, and families were targeted. We continue our work in makeshift tents without electricity, fuel, or internet, and with limited amounts of food and water. Journalists remaining in the north and Gaza City, like other Palestinians there, are under strict siege and at risk of starvation.

In Gaza, journalism is synonymous with putting our lives on the line as Israel methodically targets us in its desperate bid to silence our voices and obscure the grim reality of its genocidal actions and its project of ethnic cleansing in Palestine. For Palestinian journalists in Gaza, the blue press vest does not offer us protection, but rather functions as a red target.

The Biden administration’s ongoing support for Israel’s genocidal policies implicates it directly in the relentless targeting and massacring of journalists in Gaza, including hundreds of our colleagues and their families.

Western media has played an integral role in manufacturing consent for Israel’s ongoing violence against the Palestinian people, while obfuscating U.S. complicity. Over the past six months, the mainstream press has become the mouthpiece of the homicidal Israeli regime, promoting dehumanizing anti-Palestinian propaganda and platforming genocide apologists and perpetrators, while simultaneously ignoring, downplaying, and underreporting Israel’s war crimes against Palestinians.

The White House Correspondents’ Dinner is an embodiment of media manipulation, trading journalistic ethics for access. For journalists to fraternize at an event with President Biden and Vice President Harris would be to normalize, sanitize, and whitewash the administration’s role in genocide.

The press plays an integral role in standing up against injustice by illuminating the truth and holding power to account. Journalists in Gaza cannot continue to bear the burden of doing so alone.

As journalists reporting from the belly of the beast, you have a unique responsibility to speak truth to power and uphold journalistic integrity. It is unacceptable to stay silent out of fear or professional concern while journalists in Gaza continue to be detained, tortured, and killed for doing our jobs.

We have witnessed how journalists across the U.S. have demanded justice for fellow journalists like Jamal Khashoggii, Shireen Abu Akleh, and Evan Gershkovich. It is past time journalists take action for journalists in Gaza.

We call on all journalists of conscience to stand with us and uplift our call to boycott the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

You can learn the name and stories of some of the Palestinian journalists killed through the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Signed,

Ahmad Mousa Abu Fayyad

Abdelnaser Abu Oan

Dahman Abu Sultan

Lubna Al Ashqar

Shaher Al Badawi

Mohammed Al Buri

Luay Al Ghoul

Amal Al Ibweini

Mohamed Almasri

Dr. Rami Al Sharafi

Ahmed El-Madhoun

Yassir Fathi

Teaches Imad

Sami Issa

Ali Jadallah

Celebrate Judeh

Hind Khoudary

Mohammed Mhawish

Ziad Maqayed

Ruwa Muamar

Baidaa Othman

Even Owda

Mohammed Qneitah

Hosa Salem

Mohammed Zanoun

& additional anonymous journalists in Gaza.

Endorsed by the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate and Palestinian journalists outside of Gaza, including:

Wafa’ Abdel Rahman

Nasser Abu Baker

Mazen Abu Malek

Hafeth Abu Sabra

Salman Al Khatib

Ikram Al Tamimi

Said Arikat

Shuruq As’ad

Mariam Barghouti

Mohammed El-Kurd

Laila Haddad

Nawal Hijazi

Deeb Hourani

Nader Khouri

Jenan Matari

Eman Mohammed

Omar Nazzal

Muammar Orabi

Angham Sawalha

Ahmed Shihab-Eldin

Basem Zidane

A call to boycott the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in 2024

Over the past six months, the Israeli army has executed 125 Palestinian journalists in the Gaza Strip — representing 10 percent of the number of journalists in Gaza. 2023 marked the deadliest year for journalists globally in more than a decade, with Israeli attacks targeting more than 75 percent of journalists killed.

As Palestinian journalists from the heart of the Gaza Strip, we would like to urgently appeal to our colleagues around the world, demanding immediate and consistent action against the Biden administration’s continued complicity in the systematic killing and persecution of journalists in Gaza. We are determined to boycott the upcoming White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 27 as a show of solidarity with us, as well as the millions of Palestinians who are currently going hungry in Gaza due to the Biden administration’s continued support of Israel politically, financially, and militarily and by cutting off funding for vital humanitarian aid.

We bear an enormous burden to reveal the truth about Israel’s perpetrators of genocide and broadcast it to the world. Israel killed more than 32,000 Palestinians and we are still witnessing this genocide.

The cost imposed on us simply to perform our journalistic duties is excruciating as we are exposed to the risks of arrest, interrogation and torture by the Israeli army, all for the “crime” of journalistic integrity. More than 1,500 Palestinian journalists in Gaza have been displaced several times after their neighborhoods, homes, and families were targeted. They continue their work in makeshift tents without electricity, fuel, or the Internet, and with limited amounts of food and water. As for the journalists who remained in the north and Gaza City, they live like the rest of the Palestinians there under a strict siege and real famine.

In Gaza, the profession of journalism here means losing our lives at any moment and putting our lives in danger as Israel systematically targets us in its desperate attempt to silence our voices and hide the bitter reality of its genocidal actions and ethnic cleansing project in Palestine. The blue press shield does not provide us with protection. Rather, Israel is using it as a target to target us, which instead acts as a red target to target us.

The Biden administration is an accomplice to these atrocities through its continued support of Israel’s genocidal policies of relentlessly targeting and slaughtering journalists in Gaza, including hundreds of our colleagues and their families.

The Western media has played an essential role in manufacturing approval for Israel’s ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people, while ignoring the American role. Over the past six months, the mainstream press has become a pulpit for Israel’s murderous regime, promoting anti-Palestinian propaganda and providing a platform for genocide apologists and perpetrators, while ignoring, belittling and belittling the war crimes committed by Israel against the Palestinians.

So, the White House Correspondents’ Dinner is the embodiment of media manipulation, exchanging journalistic ethics for access. It is impossible for journalists to communicate at an event with President Biden and Vice President Harris without this being normalization and complicity of the administration’s role in genocide.

Journalism plays an essential role in standing up against injustice by shedding light on the truth and holding power to account. Gaza’s journalists cannot continue to bear the burden of doing this alone. As our fellow journalists, working from the eye of the hurricane, you have a unique responsibility to speak truth to power and commit to journalistic integrity. It is unacceptable to remain silent out of fear or because personal gain takes precedence over professionalism while journalists in Gaza continue to be arrested, tortured and killed for doing their work. Especially after we witnessed how journalists across the United States demanded justice for fellow journalists like Jamal Khashoggi, Sherine Abu Okla, and Evan Gershkovitch. It is time for journalists to take action on behalf of journalists in Gaza.

We reiterate our call to all journalists of conscience to stand with us and support our call to boycott the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

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