Taiwan’s top military officer and seven others died after a helicopter crash-landed in the mountains Thursday, the defence ministry said.

Chief of general staff General Shen Yi-ming was killed after the UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter crashed in mountains near Taipei, according to defence ministry spokesman Shih Shun-wen. Five others have been rescued.

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Shen, 62, and several top military officials were on a routine mission to visit soldiers in the northeast Yilan county ahead of the lunar new year later this month.

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