WASHINGTON — The U.S. Army Special Operations Command on Monday identified the five Army aviation special operations forces killed when their helicopter crashed in the Eastern Mediterranean over the weekend, calling each a “national treasure” whose loss cut deeply.

The military’s European Command said the UH-60 helicopter went down in an air refueling mission as part of military training.

The five service members who died were Chief Warrant Officer 3 Stephen R. Dwyer, 38, of Clarksville, Tennessee; Chief Warrant Officer 2 Shane M. Barnes, 34, of Sacramento, California; Staff Sgt. Tanner W. Grone, 26, of Gorham, New Hampshire; Sgt. Andrew P. Southard, 27, of Apache Junction, Arizona; and Sgt. Cade M. Wolfe, 24, of Mankato, Minnesota. They were all part of the Army’s 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment based at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

Grone’s parents, Steve and Erica Grone, said of their son in a Facebook post that they were “beyond proud of what you became and believed in. Thank you for all these amazing years. Please watch over us. Love you and can’t express how much you will be missed.”

This is the second fatal helicopter crash involving a Fort Campbell unit this year. In March, two HH-60 Black Hawks assigned to the 101st Airborne Division collided in a nighttime training flight, killing all nine soldiers aboard.

The U.S. has built up its force presence in the Eastern Mediterranean and the broader Middle East in response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. There are two carrier strike groups operating in the region, U.S. Air Force squadrons have received additional crews and warplanes, and U.S. special operations forces have been added to help Israel in efforts to rescue hostages taken into Gaza.

Secret Service gunfire: Secret Service agents protecting President Joe Biden’s granddaughter opened fire after three people tried to break into an unmarked Secret Service vehicle in Washington, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.

The agents, assigned to protect Naomi Biden, were out with her in the capital’s Georgetown neighborhood late Sunday when they saw the three people breaking a window of the unoccupied SUV, the official said.

One agent opened fire, but no one was struck, the Secret Service said. The three people were seen fleeing in a red car.

Washington has seen a rise in carjackings and car thefts this year. Police have reported over 750 carjackings this year and more than 6,000 reports of stolen vehicles in the district.

SKorea diplomacy: The United States and South Korea on Monday updated a bilateral security agreement with the aim of more effectively countering North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile threats.

The move followed high-level military talks in Seoul, where the allies also discussed enhancing three-way defense exercises with Japan and improving information-sharing on North Korean missile launches.

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was in Seoul for annual security talks with South Korean military officials, including Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, which were focused on boosting nuclear deterrence against North Korea. They also talked about how the allies could coordinate over broader issues, including Russia’s war on Ukraine and China’s regional assertiveness, Austin said.

Tensions between the Koreas are at their highest point in years as the pace of North Korea’s weapons tests and South Korea’s combined military exercises with the United States have intensified in a cycle of tit-for-tat.

Poland politics: Poland faced a contentious and protracted transition of power on Monday as the president designated the outgoing prime minister to lead the new government in a caretaker capacity, angering a pro-European Union alliance with a strong majority in the new parliament. The chamber overwhelmingly chose a speaker from the alliance that must wait longer to lead.

Political opponents accused President Andrzej Duda, who is allied with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki’s right-wing Law and Justice party, of acting against the will of voters by giving Morawiecki up to four more weeks to lead. They accused Morawiecki’s conservative government, in power for eight years, of hanging on to appoint allies to state positions.

Morawiecki had offered his conservative government’s resignation as required after his party lost its parliament majority in last month’s election, but Duda within hours redesignated him as prime minister candidate.

The alliance of pro-EU parties has vowed to restore democratic standards. Its candidate for prime minister is Donald Tusk, the centrist and former prime minister.

Morawiecki in an address to parliament expressed a desire to build a new government that transcends party divisions. When he appealed for support, his critics responded with laughter.

Tunnel rescue: Rescuers were digging through dirt and parts of a collapsed road tunnel Monday to reach 40 workers trapped by a landslide at the construction project in northern India.

All of the construction workers are safe, police officer Prashant Kumar said, adding that they have been supplied with oxygen and water. He said the rescuers had established contact with the trapped individuals.

The collapse occurred Sunday in Uttarakhand, a mountainous state with Hindu temples that attracts pilgrims and tourists.

LA freeway fire: Los Angeles will be without a section of a vital freeway for an uncertain amount of time following a massive weekend fire that caused damage reminiscent of the 1994 Northridge earthquake that flattened thoroughfares, officials warned Monday.

After the 1994 quake, it took more than two months to repair I-10 and that was considered significantly fast.

The cause of the fire Saturday is under investigation. Flames reported around 12:20 a.m. Saturday ripped through two storage lots in an industrial area beneath the highway, burning parked cars, stacks of wooden pallets and support poles for high-tension power lines, city fire Chief Kristin Crowley said. No injuries were reported.

At least 16 homeless people living underneath the highway were evacuated and taken to shelters. Officials said there was no immediate indication that the blaze began at the encampment.

More than 160 firefighters responded to the blaze, which spread across 8 acres and burned for three hours.

It’s unclear what structural damage the blaze caused to the freeway. Engineers were assessing the situation Monday.