Four people survived and two are unaccounted for after a Russian plane crashed in mountainous northeastern Afghanistan, the air transport agency Rosaviatsia said on Sunday.

The Falcon 10 business jet was believed to be carrying six people on a hospital flight from India to Uzbekistan and Russia before communication was lost on Saturday evening.

“Of the six people on board the aircraft, tentatively, four are alive. They have various injuries. The fate of two people is being clarified,” Rosaviatsia said, citing the Russian embassy in Afghanistan.

The RIA Novosti news agency said two passengers were Russians, one who was seriously ill, and the other her husband who had paid for the flight.

The two-engine plane was built by France’s Dassault in 1978 and owned by a company called Athletic Group and a private individual.

A provincial government official in Afghanistan told AFP the aircraft came down in Badakhshan province, which borders China, Tajikistan and Pakistan.

The area of the crash is eight hours by road from the provincial capital Faizabad, said Zabihullah Amiri, head of the provincial information department.

Russian investigators announced the opening of a probe into the cause of the crash.

The mighty Hindu Kush mountain range cuts through the province, which is home to Afghanistan’s highest peak, Mount Noshaq, at 7,492 metres (24,580 feet) tall.

Opinion

Editorial

Balochistan tragedy
Updated 26 May, 2026

Balochistan tragedy

The state keeps reiterating the role of hostile foreign actors in fomenting unrest, yet seems to be short on ideas on how to prevent the ingress of such actors and their ideologies in Baloch society.
Economic engagement
26 May, 2026

Economic engagement

AN array of investment MoUs valued at $7bn signed during Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s China visit signifies...
Flotilla abuse
26 May, 2026

Flotilla abuse

THE testimonies that have emerged from international activists, who were part of a Gaza-bound flotilla, paint a...
In chains
Updated 25 May, 2026

In chains

THE question should never be about who is at the receiving end at any given point in time: an assault on an...
Climate shocks
25 May, 2026

Climate shocks

THE latest State Bank report documenting recurring climatic disasters in Pakistan during the period between 2000 and...
Justice deferred
25 May, 2026

Justice deferred

PAKISTAN’S courts are quick to remind the public that justice takes time. Increasingly, however, it is the conduct...