Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
International

Norway, Philippines Envoys Among Seven Dead In Pakistan Chopper Crash

Darpan News Desk IANS, 08 May, 2015 01:28 PM
  • Norway, Philippines Envoys Among Seven Dead In Pakistan Chopper Crash
The ambassadors of the Philippines and Norway were among seven people killed on Friday in a chopper crash in Pakistan's Naltar valley near Gilgit.
 
Even as the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) claimed the crash was caused by an attack it carried out, the army said the chopper "developed technical fault" while landing, media reports said. 
 
In an update on Twitter, Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asim Bajwa said the dead included four foreigners -- Ambassadors Domingo D. Lucinerio Jr. of the Philippines and Leif Larsen of Norway and the wives of the Malaysian and Indonesian ambassadors -- and three Pakistanis -- two pilots and one crew member.
 
He said that according to initial information, two helicopters belonging to the Pakistan Army landed safely "while the third developed technical fault while landing", which caused the accident.
 
He ruled out the possibility of any terrorist or subversive activity, according to Dawn online.
 
The Pakistan Army helicopter crash-landed on a school, the report said, adding that Dutch Ambassador Marcel de Vink and Polish Ambassador Andrzej Ananicz were injured in the incident.
 
Earlier, in a series of tweets, Bajwa said that six Pakistanis and 11 foreigners were on board the MI-17 helicopter.
 
Three helicopters were carrying a delegation of foreign diplomats and their wives and aides to Gilgit-Baltistan, where they were scheduled to meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. 
 
"It was a diplomatic trip with members of 37 countries in total," said a passenger in one of the helicopters, who requested anonymity, adding that the school caught fire after the chopper crashed on it.
 
Expressing grief over the death of the envoys, Sharif has announced a one-day mourning, Associated Press of Pakistan reported. He was scheduled to visit Gilgit on Friday for the inauguration of two projects.
 
Shortly after the incident, the injured were taken to a military hospital in Gilgit, officials said.
 
A board of inquiry has been constituted to investigate the cause of the crash.

MORE International ARTICLES

Obama reiterates ASEAN investment, pledges to strengthen ties

Obama reiterates ASEAN investment, pledges to strengthen ties
US President Barrack Obama Thursday reiterated his country's investment in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and commitment...

Obama reiterates ASEAN investment, pledges to strengthen ties

51 IS militants killed in Iraq

51 IS militants killed in Iraq
A total of 51 Islamic State (IS) militants were killed in airstrikes and clashes with Iraqi security forces in Iraq's central province of Salahudin Thursday, a provincial security source said....

51 IS militants killed in Iraq

India-Russia ties will be strengthened: Modi tells Medvedev

India-Russia ties will be strengthened: Modi tells Medvedev
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday met his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev and said he was sure India-Russia ties will be strengthened....

India-Russia ties will be strengthened: Modi tells Medvedev

Indian army chief conferred honorary Nepal Army title

Indian army chief conferred honorary Nepal Army title
Nepalese President Ram Baran Yadav Thursday conferred the honorary title of General of the Nepal Army upon visiting Indian Army Chief Gen. Dalbir Singh....

Indian army chief conferred honorary Nepal Army title

Wagah suicide bomber was 25-year-old: militants

Wagah suicide bomber was 25-year-old: militants
The Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan's (TTP) Jamaat-ul-Ahrar faction Thursday released details of a man it said carried out the deadly suicide bombing near the Pakistan-India...

Wagah suicide bomber was 25-year-old: militants

Investigators leave MH17 crash site in east Ukraine

Investigators leave MH17 crash site in east Ukraine
Dutch investigators probing the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17's crash site Thursday left the Donetsk region in east Ukraine....

Investigators leave MH17 crash site in east Ukraine