Guinean military chief killed in plane crash in Liberia
- Category: Africa
- Written by Reuters
The head of Guinea’s armed forces, a staunch ally of President Alpha Conde, was killed on Monday when the aircraft carrying him and five other top Guinean military officials crashed close to the Liberian capital Monrovia.
General Souleymane Kelefa Diallo, who was on a security mission to Liberia, was appointed by Conde after the latter won elections in 2010 in the world’s top bauxite producer.
Diallo was charged with reforming the restive army in the West African state after two years of military rule.
Investigators and United Nations peacekeepers picked through the charred wreckage of the aircraft amid a grove of palm trees near Charlesville, some 40 kilometres South-East of the Liberian capital Monrovia. There were no survivors.
“This accident cost the life of six members of the delegation, including General Souleymane Kelefa Diallo, head of the armed forces, and five members of the crew,” Guinea’s Defence Minister Abdoul Kabele Camara said in a statement.
Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, who visited the crash site in the company of Guinea’s ambassador to Liberia, declared a national day of mourning for Tuesday.
Liberia’s Defense Minister Brownie Samukai said the cause of the crash was not immediately clear.—Reuters
