U.N. Copter Crash in Lebanon Kills 5

A U.N. helicopter on a training mission crashed late Wednesday in the Israeli-occupied area of southern Lebanon, killing all five peacekeepers on board, Lebanese security officials said.

The cause of the crash was not known. Witnesses said they saw an explosion before the helicopter went down. Four of the dead were Italian and the fifth was Irish, according to a statement from U.N. offices in New York.

Meanwhile, Lebanon’s pro-Iranian Shiite Muslim Hezbollah guerrillas fired more than 30 Katyusha rockets toward Israel late Wednesday, a pro-Israeli militia source said.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.