Military helicopter crash in Pakistani Kashmir killed 22, security sources say


People and police gather nearby as smoke billows from the site where an Mi-17 helicopter of Pakistan Army Aviation crashed near Muzaffarabad, Pakistani Kashmir, June 10, 2026. Picture taken with a mobile phone. REUTERS/Tariq Maqbool

MUZAFFARABAD, June 11 (Reuters) - ⁠At least 22 personnel were killed in ⁠Wednesday's military helicopter crash in Pakistani ‌Kashmir, security sources said on Thursday, as funeral processions were held in the territory's capital Muzaffarabad.

Videos from the crash ​scene showed plumes of thick, ⁠black smoke rising from ⁠behind the buildings where the helicopter went down.

The ⁠source ‌said those killed included 19 soldiers, one army major and two colonels.

The ⁠soldiers received a ceremonial funeral with their ​coffins draped ‌in Pakistani flags and carried by members ⁠of the ​artillery unit stationed in Kashmir.

Pakistan's military said on Wednesday that the Mi-17 helicopter crashed due to ⁠a technical fault and all ​those on board were killed.

An inquiry has been ordered into the exact technical cause of the ⁠accident, it added.

The crash took place at a time when strict security restrictions have been imposed on Kashmir following clashes between supporters of ​a recently banned alliance of ⁠civil society groups and security forces that ​killed at least 11 people ‌on Sunday.

(Reporting by Saad Sayeed, ​Writing by Hritam Mukherjee and Saad Sayeed; Editing by YP Rajesh, Alexandra Hudson)

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