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Video: Taliban Downed Pakistan Helicopter Carrying Diplomats


A Taliban video purports to show militants with a surface-to-air missile, claiming they used a similar one to shoot down a Pakistani helicopter carrying diplomats.

The video seen by the AP news agency includes a message from the Pakistani Taliban claiming they fired a missile from a distance of 3 kilometers to down the helicopter on May 8.

The crash killed the ambassadors to Pakistan from the Philippines and Norway and the wives of the ambassadors from Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as three Pakistani crew members. Several other diplomats on board escaped unhurt.

Pakistani authorities say a technical failure caused the crash and dismiss an earlier Taliban claim they shot down the helicopter as opportunistic. However, the surface-to-air missile shown in the video appeared real.

Military officials could not be immediately reached May 10 to discuss the video.

Based on reporting by AP

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