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Four NATO staff from U.S. died in the crash in southern Afghanistan on Saturday
Victims worked for NATO-led International Security Assistance Force
Identities and military status of the casualties have not been released
The four NATO soldiers killed Saturday when a surveillance aircraft crashed in southern Afghanistan have been identified by the Pentagon as U.S. airmen.
Military officials say the crash of the MC-12 Liberty turboprop plane, which was outfitted with sophisticated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance equipment, was not related to Taliban violence.
The police chief in Zabul province, Rogh Lewanai, told Reuters on Saturday that bad weather caused the plane to crash in the district of Shahjoi.
The Pentagon said on Sunday the crash of the MC-12 was under investigation.
Zabul, wedged between Kandahar and Ghazni, has seen much violence in recent weeks, including a suicide bomb attack in early April that killed a young U.S. diplomat, several U.S. soldiers and an unnamed U.S. civilian. Dozens of Afghan civilians also have been killed there this month.
The Pentagon said all four victims were airmen: Captain Brandon Cyr, 28, of Woodbridge, Virginia; Captain Reid Nishizuka, 30, of Kailua, Hawaii; Staff Sergeant Daniel Fannin, 30, of Morehead, Kentucky; and Staff Sergeant Richard Dickson, 24, of Rancho Cordova, California.
Mohammad Jan Rasoulyar, deputy governor of Zabul, said the site had been surrounded by international forces.
The American deaths came as the Taliban announced the start of their spring offensive with attacks on both military and diplomatic targets in the northern Faryab Province.
Military insurgents are believed to have taken control of several villages in the province's Qaisar district.
a spokesman for the provincial governor, Jawed Baidar, told the BBC.
He added that women and children are believed to have been among the casualties.
Online casualty tracker iCasualty.com reports that 33 Americans have been killed so far this year in Afghanistan - 14 in April. Last year, 34 Americans died in April in the conflict.
More than 2,100 American service members have lost their lives fighting in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001.
Afghan war: Four U.S. airmen killed in plane crash identified by Pentagon | Mail Online
Cargo plane crashes in north of Kabul, Taliban claim responsibility
KABUL, April 29 (Xinhua)-- A cargo plane crashed in Bagram 50 km north of Afghan capital Kabul on Monday, an official told Xinhua but declined to be identified, saying authorized officials would brief the media.
Bagram which located in Parwan province is the main military base of U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, police chief of Parwan province Abdul Rahman Sarjang in talks with Xinhua confirmed the incident, saying the accident took place on the runway of Bagram airfield due to technical problems when the plane was taking off.
He also confirmed that the plane belongs to the NATO-led troops. Without giving more details, the police official added that some people aboard the plane were killed in the incident.
Taliban militants fighting the government and NATO-led forces in Afghanistan have claimed responsibility for the plane crash.
The armed outfit in a statement sent to media claimed that Taliban fighters targeted a cargo plane of the U.S. forces next to the Bagram airbase at 04:00 p.m. local time Monday. The plane caught fire and all aboard was killed. U.S. military has yet to make comment.
Without giving details on the type of weapons used in the attack, the statement stressed that targeting and crashing the plane is part of Taliban spring offensive codenamed "Khalid Bin Waleed" which was announced last Saturday.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-04/29/c_132349541.htm
Victims worked for NATO-led International Security Assistance Force
Identities and military status of the casualties have not been released
The four NATO soldiers killed Saturday when a surveillance aircraft crashed in southern Afghanistan have been identified by the Pentagon as U.S. airmen.
Military officials say the crash of the MC-12 Liberty turboprop plane, which was outfitted with sophisticated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance equipment, was not related to Taliban violence.
The police chief in Zabul province, Rogh Lewanai, told Reuters on Saturday that bad weather caused the plane to crash in the district of Shahjoi.
The Pentagon said on Sunday the crash of the MC-12 was under investigation.
Zabul, wedged between Kandahar and Ghazni, has seen much violence in recent weeks, including a suicide bomb attack in early April that killed a young U.S. diplomat, several U.S. soldiers and an unnamed U.S. civilian. Dozens of Afghan civilians also have been killed there this month.
The Pentagon said all four victims were airmen: Captain Brandon Cyr, 28, of Woodbridge, Virginia; Captain Reid Nishizuka, 30, of Kailua, Hawaii; Staff Sergeant Daniel Fannin, 30, of Morehead, Kentucky; and Staff Sergeant Richard Dickson, 24, of Rancho Cordova, California.
Mohammad Jan Rasoulyar, deputy governor of Zabul, said the site had been surrounded by international forces.
The American deaths came as the Taliban announced the start of their spring offensive with attacks on both military and diplomatic targets in the northern Faryab Province.
Military insurgents are believed to have taken control of several villages in the province's Qaisar district.
a spokesman for the provincial governor, Jawed Baidar, told the BBC.
He added that women and children are believed to have been among the casualties.
Online casualty tracker iCasualty.com reports that 33 Americans have been killed so far this year in Afghanistan - 14 in April. Last year, 34 Americans died in April in the conflict.
More than 2,100 American service members have lost their lives fighting in Afghanistan since the war began in 2001.
Afghan war: Four U.S. airmen killed in plane crash identified by Pentagon | Mail Online
Cargo plane crashes in north of Kabul, Taliban claim responsibility
KABUL, April 29 (Xinhua)-- A cargo plane crashed in Bagram 50 km north of Afghan capital Kabul on Monday, an official told Xinhua but declined to be identified, saying authorized officials would brief the media.
Bagram which located in Parwan province is the main military base of U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, police chief of Parwan province Abdul Rahman Sarjang in talks with Xinhua confirmed the incident, saying the accident took place on the runway of Bagram airfield due to technical problems when the plane was taking off.
He also confirmed that the plane belongs to the NATO-led troops. Without giving more details, the police official added that some people aboard the plane were killed in the incident.
Taliban militants fighting the government and NATO-led forces in Afghanistan have claimed responsibility for the plane crash.
The armed outfit in a statement sent to media claimed that Taliban fighters targeted a cargo plane of the U.S. forces next to the Bagram airbase at 04:00 p.m. local time Monday. The plane caught fire and all aboard was killed. U.S. military has yet to make comment.
Without giving details on the type of weapons used in the attack, the statement stressed that targeting and crashing the plane is part of Taliban spring offensive codenamed "Khalid Bin Waleed" which was announced last Saturday.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2013-04/29/c_132349541.htm
