Russian Helicopter Accidentally Fires Rocket at Spectators

Three people were injured after a Russian military helicopter accidentally fired a rocket into a group of invited spectators during a large-scale military exercise, Russian media reported Tuesday. The RBC news agency said the injured spectators were not civilians. Russia’s ministry of defense did not clarify to reporters whether the accident had taken place during the drills in Zapad on Monday. It said reports of injuries were “either a deliberate provocation or someone’s individual stupidity.” The seven-day Zapad military exercises are simulating a NATO-backed separatist revolt in northern Belarus.