An Afghan helicopter carrying security forces crashed in western Afghanistan. According to reports released by local officials, all personnel on board were killed but they ruled out that the helicopter was shot down by Taliban militants.
In recent weeks, the intensification of assaults by Taliban militants has forced Afghan and foreign forces to increase the use of air transport to move troops and supplies, but insufficient training and inadequate planning have led to frequent accidents.
Naser Mehri, a spokesman for the government of the province of Farah, in a statement released after the accident said that "The helicopter crashed due to a technical problem, not due to the attack by the Taliban."
An official of the Ministry of Defense announced that some Afghan security was traveling on the helicopter and that the causes that caused the crash are being investigated.
The Taliban, after their expulsion of the 2001 occurred with the help of US-led troops, are intensifying the fighting to expel foreign forces, defeat the government and impose their version of Islamist domination.