Helicopter crash: Saudi prince killed near Yemen border

A Saudi prince was killed on Sunday when a helicopter with several officials on board crashed near the kingdom’s southern border with war-torn Yemen.

Prince Mansour bin Muqrin, the deputy governor of Asir province and son of a former crown prince; has been killed along with several other officials in a helicopter crash the near the country’s border.

A helicopter, with a group of Saudi officials on an inspection trip, crashed in the Asir Region in the country’s southwest, reports said. 

News of the crash comes as Saudi Arabia pursues a sweeping purge of the kingdom’s upper ranks, with dozens of princes, ministers and a billionaire tycoon arrested as Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman cements his hold on power.

The anti-corruption body is led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the half-brother of Prince Mansour bin Muqrin.

Already viewed as the de facto ruler controlling all the major levers of government, from defense to the economy, Prince Mohammed is widely seen to be stamping out traces of internal dissent before a formal transfer of power from his 81-year-old father King Salman.

The helicopter crash also comes after Saudi Arabia on Saturday intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile near Riyadh’s international airport after it was fired from Yemen in an escalation of the kingdom’s war against Iran-backed Huthi rebels.

On Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced rewards of up to $30-million for information that would help arrest or track down some of the top Huthi rebel leaders and planners.

The fate of the other occupants of the helicopter remains unclear, but Saudi news outlet Okaz said that unconfirmed reports suggested there were no survivors.

Asir Region is located in the southwest of the country, bordering Yemen. The area has seen a number of cross-border retaliatory attacks from Yemen in recent months, reportedly leading to casualties among Saudi troops.

Saudi Arabia has been embroiled in the Yemeni conflict since March 2015 on behalf of ousted Yemeni President Mansour Hadi and against the Shi’ite Houthi rebels.