DUSHANBE, Tajikistan(AP) — A spokesman for Tajikistan's National Guards says one of its helicopters has crashed, killing four crewmembers and injuring three others.
Hainirisso Komilova said the Mi-8 helicopter went down Wednesday near the airport of Garm.
Garm is the main city in the volatile Rasht Valley, where government troops have been conducting a security raid against Islamic militants who ambushed a military convoy last month, killing at least 25 soldiers.
Komilova said that the reason for the crash wasn’t immediatedly clear, but added that the area where the helicopter crashed is away from a mountain gorge where the security sweep is being conducted.
The fighting in Tajikistanhas raised fears that Islamic militancy is spilling over from neighboring Afghanistan.
