ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani army MI-17 helicopter crashed due to a technical fault in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on Wednesday, killing all military personnel on board, the military said. The military did not immediately disclose how many people were aboard the helicopter.
The crash occurred near Muzaffarabad, the regional capital, during an ongoing protest and strike called by the Joint Awami Action Committee, a recently banned alliance of various groups.
The military did not suggest any link between the protest and the crash.
Witnesses said the helicopter crashed shortly after takeoff from a helipad. Ambulances arrived at the scene and transported the victims to a nearby hospital.
“Rescue and recovery teams immediately reached the crash site,” the military said, adding that a board of inquiry had been ordered to determine the exact cause of the accident.
Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow over the crash, paying tribute to the military personnel killed. In separate statements, they conveyed sympathies to the families of the victims.
Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, also expressed deep sorrow over the loss of life and extended condolences to the families of those killed, according to the statement.