Skopje, 12 January 2025 (MIA) — Minister of Defense Vlado Misajlovski and the country's Chief of Defense Maj. Gen. Sashko Lafchiski laid Sunday a wreath of fresh flowers at the Blace memorial to the 11 Macedonian peacekeepers who were killed in a fatal helicopter crash there 17 years ago. 

The army members were on their way back from the ALTHEA mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Delegations are also paying their respects to the dead peacekeepers at the Strasho Pindzhur army barracks and Camp Butmir near Sarajevo.

The MI-17 helicopter of the armed forces was en route from Camp Butmir to Skopje when it crashed due to bad weather on Jan. 12, 2008.

The Macedonian peacekeepers, who returned from a six-month ALTHEA mission in Bosnia, lost contact with the Skopje airport control at about six miles from their destination.

Lieutenant-Colonel Toni Spasovski, Major Goran Ristovski, Captains Brane Spasovski and Igor Gjoreski, Master Sergeants Slavcho Vasilev and Toni Davitkovski, Staff Sergeants Janko Shiric, Miki Ivanovski, Aleksandar Taskovski and Aleksandar Vasic, as well as Corporal Zlatko Veljanovski were killed in the crash.