Transport plane crashes in Afghanistan, killing 7

At least seven people were killed when a transport plane crashed at a local airport in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand Wednesday night, a local official said Thursday.

"A cargo plane with nine people aboard was crashed shortly after taking off from Dwyer airport in Garmser district, Helmand province overnight," the Afghan official told Xinhua anonymously.

The plane, belonging to an Azerbaijani airline, had transported goods to a military base in Dwyer which is running by the coalition troops, the source added.

"The crew members were from Azerbaijan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. The initial information found seven of them lost their lives and two others injured in the crash," the source noted.

Details about the incident and cause of the crash remained unknown.

Helmand with Lashkar Gah as its capital, 555 km south of Afghan capital, is notorious for poppy growing and Taliban-led militancy.

Omar Zwak, a spokesperson for the provincial government, confirmed the incident.

"We do aware of the crash. The local authorities had launched an investigation into the incident. And details would be made public later on the day," Zwak told Xinhua.

No official from Afghan Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation was immediately available to make comments.

Source: XINHUA