Taiwan's top military officer and seven other people have been killed in an air force helicopter crash in a mountainous area outside Taipei.
Five others survived. Gen. Shen Yi-ming was responsible for overseeing the self-governing island's defense against China, which threatens to use military force to annex what it considers part of its territory.
The victims also included other senior military officials and the two pilots.
The cause of the crash of the Blackhawk helicopter was not immediately clear. Shen had taken over as chief of the general staff in July after serving as commander of Taiwan’s air force.
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