A Pakistani military helicopter carrying 11 foreigners on Friday crashed in the PoK, killing ambassadors of the Philippines and Norway and at least four others as the Taliban claimed responsibility for the downing of the chopper and said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was the target.
Pakistan Army, however, ruled out the possibility of any terrorist or subversive activity in the crash in Gilgit-Baltistan in the north.Leif H Larsen, the Norwegian envoy, and Domingo D Lucenario Jr of the Philippines were killed
along with the wives of the Malaysian and Indonesian ambassadors, besides two army pilots in the helicopter that caught fire as it crashed into a school that had children inside at the time.
Six Pakistanis and 11 foreigners were on board the Mi-17 helicopter that was making an emergency landing when it crashed in Naltar valley, setting the school building ablaze, according to initial reports.
Pakistani military spokesman Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa said,“Two pilots and four foreigners, including ambassadors of Philippine, Norway and wives of Malaysian and Indonesian ambassador were killed,” .
The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) main spokesman Muhammad Khorasani
claimed the responsibility for the downing of the helicopter and said, "The helicopter was shot down by an anti-aircraft missile, killing pilots and many foreign ambassadors,BUT Sharif was their target.” .
“A special group of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan had prepared a special plan to target Nawaz Sharif during his visit but he survived because he was travelling in another helicopter,” Khorasani added.