KABUL, July 26: A helicopter crashed into mountains in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing all four people on board, the government said.

It was not immediately clear who was using the chopper, which came down in the Paktia province, interior ministry spokesman Yousuf Stanizai told AFP.

The helicopter had taken off in the neighbouring Khost province, defence ministry spokesman Mohammad Zahir Azimi said.

“It has crashed 35 kilometres from the Khost province and has hit the Qalandar mountains,” Mr Azimi said. The route would suggest the chopper was headed to Kabul.

The Afghan army had sent a helicopter to the site of the crash and had also dispatched a unit to the area by land, he said.

There have been several air crashes in mountainous Afghanistan, some of them involving military aircraft which have been shot down.—AFP