Five killed in military helicopter crash in Afghanistan
A military helicopter carrying Afghan security forces has crashed in the country’s western province of Farah, killing all five people on board, including the pilot.
Local officials said the incident took place in Ranng village in Khaksafid district of Farah on Friday night.
Afghanistan's Tolo News channel said the helicopter was heading to Farah from 207th Zafar Military Corps in Herat Province when it came down, citing technical problems.
The incident comes as a wave of assaults by the Taliban militants has forced Afghan forces to make far greater use of air transport to move troops and supplies. Inadequate training and poor planning have, however, led to frequent crashes.
Mohammad Naser Mehri, provincial governor’s spokesman, said the hard landing was caused by a technical problem and the chopper caught fire because it was loaded with ammunition.
A Defense Ministry official in Kabul said the cause of the crash was being investigated, reaffirming that the helicopter had been transporting Afghan security forces.
This is the second helicopter crash over the past two weeks in Afghanistan. The previous one occurred in the northern Balkh Province, leaving three dead.
The war-wracked country suffers from scores of deadly attacks by the Taliban militant group almost across the country.
The Taliban’s five-year rule over at least three quarters of Afghanistan came to an end when the United States and its allies invaded the country on October 7, 2001 as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror; but, ever since, the group has been involved in widespread militancy, killing thousands of civilians as well as Afghan security forces and displacing tens of thousands of people across the country.
Many parts of the country remain plagued by the militancy despite the presence of US-led foreign forces.
Since late last year, Daesh, which has already lost all its urban strongholds in Syria and Iraq, has also taken advantage of the chaos in Afghanistan and established a foothold in the country’s eastern and northern regions.
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