Egypt extended its deep sympathy and condolences to the governments of the United States, France, Czech Republic, and the Multinational Force and Observers (MFO) command in Sinai over a helicopter crash in Red Sea’s Tiran, that killed eight members of the peacekeeper force.

According to an official statement released late Thursday, the Egyptian foreign ministry expressed its condolences over the “tragic accident”, which the statement also said occurred due to a technical failure when flying over the island.

The MFO stated that eight of its peacekeepers died, with one injured in the deadly crash which occurred during a routine mission. The injured peacekeeper was then medically evacuated.

“A full investigation of the cause of the crash, which appears to be mechanical in nature, has been launched,” the MFO added.

The MFO was installed to monitor the demilitarisation of Sinai under the 1979 Egypt-Israel peace accord.

According to its website, the MFO has 1,154 military personnel from the United States and 12 other countries covering an area of more than 10,000 square kilometres (3,860 square miles) in Sinai. Some 452 of the personnel are American.