Ghana held a solemn funeral ceremony on Sunday for two of the eight victims of last week’s tragic military helicopter crash, which has been described as one of the country’s worst air disasters in over a decade.
The bodies of former Environment Minister Ibrahim Muhammed Murtala and Deputy National Security Coordinator Alhaji Muniru Limuna Mohammed were laid to rest at a military cemetery in Accra following a tribute by President John Mahama.
“I believe that they would have wanted us to continue the hard work that we were doing with them,” President Mahama said during the ceremony. “In memory of them, we shall continue to work very hard to serve the people of Ghana… so that their names will be written in gold in paradise.”
The August 6 crash claimed the lives of all on board, including Defense Minister Edward Omani Bama. The victims were officially identified after DNA analysis in South Africa.
A state funeral for all eight victims has been scheduled for Friday, August 15, at Black Star Square in Accra.
The helicopter involved was a Ghana Air Force Z9, commonly used for transport and medical evacuations. The military has confirmed that an investigation into the cause of the crash is underway.
The nation remains in mourning as it prepares to honor the victims in a final farewell later this week.
