Plane Crash in Congo Kills 17, Including Top Military Officials

Seventeen people were killed in a plane crash in the southwestern part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the country's Ministry of Transport announced on Saturday evening.

The aircraft, a Let 410 UVP model operated by Tracep Congo Aviation, was carrying a delegation of military justice officials and crashed on Friday near the city of Kanga in the Kwango province, more than 200 kilometers east of the capital, Kinshasa.

According to the Ministry of Transport, 13 passengers and four crew members died in the crash. Among the victims were Joseph Mutombo, head of the Supreme Military Court, and Lucien-Rene Likolia, the prosecutor general of the armed forces. Both held the rank of lieutenant general.

The President of the Congo has ordered an investigation to determine the circumstances of the crash.