A Cabinet minister and other Sudanese government officials are dead after a helicopter crashed in a mountainous southern region on Sunday, killing all 32 people on board.

State-run news agency SUNA said the helicopter went down near Talodi, a small town about 650 kilometers southwest of the capital Khartoum around 8 a.m. Monday, local time.

Sudan's public relations minister said in a statement that 26 government delegates including Minister of Endowment Ghadi al-Sadeq and six crew members were on board. The minister confirmed the chopper crashed due to harsh weather conditions and that everyone on board has died.

The statement also said the aircraft attempted to land twice prior to the crash but failed due to the inclement weather and eventually slammed into a mountain.