Five U.S. troops fighting Islamist insurgents in southern Afghanistan were killed in a helicopter crash in bad weather, the coalition and provincial authorities said on Tuesday.
Police in the province of Kandahar said the Black Hawk helicopter came down late on Monday during a heavy rainstorm in Daman district.
The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) does not release the nationality of casualties, but a Western military official who declined to be named confirmed that the victims were all U.S. forces personnel.
“The cause of the crash is under investigation.
However, initial reporting indicates there was no enemy activity in the area at the time,” ISAF said in a statement.
A spokesman said that all on board the helicopter had died in the crash.
A Taliban representative in Kandahar said the militants had brought down the aircraft, although the group often makes false claims of responsibility for incidents in which Nato troops die.
Helicopter crashes are fairly frequent in Afghanistan, where the 100,000-strong international mission relies heavily on air transport as it battles against the insurgency across the south of the country.
“There was bad weather in the area and the helicopter crashed at about 10:00 pm,” Kandahar provincial police chief General Abdul Razeq told AFP. “No insurgents were there at the time.”
Daman district is one of most stable areas of Kandahar, a province at the heart of the unrest, and local officials said the crash site was not far from Kandahar city.AFP
Police in the province of Kandahar said the Black Hawk helicopter came down late on Monday during a heavy rainstorm in Daman district.
The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) does not release the nationality of casualties, but a Western military official who declined to be named confirmed that the victims were all U.S. forces personnel.
“The cause of the crash is under investigation.
However, initial reporting indicates there was no enemy activity in the area at the time,” ISAF said in a statement.
A spokesman said that all on board the helicopter had died in the crash.
A Taliban representative in Kandahar said the militants had brought down the aircraft, although the group often makes false claims of responsibility for incidents in which Nato troops die.
Helicopter crashes are fairly frequent in Afghanistan, where the 100,000-strong international mission relies heavily on air transport as it battles against the insurgency across the south of the country.
“There was bad weather in the area and the helicopter crashed at about 10:00 pm,” Kandahar provincial police chief General Abdul Razeq told AFP. “No insurgents were there at the time.”
Daman district is one of most stable areas of Kandahar, a province at the heart of the unrest, and local officials said the crash site was not far from Kandahar city.AFP