U.S. copter crashes in Afghanistan, all aboard killed

A U.S. military Chinook helicopter crashed Sunday in southern Afghanistan, killing all five crew members on board, the U.S. military said.

It hasn’t been made clear yet if the chopper has been shot down, AP reported.

"The cause of the crash is unknown at this time," the military statement said.

"There is no indication at this time that this is a result of hostile fire," U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jerry O'Hara told The Associated Press, adding that all five crew members had been killed.

"There are no survivors."

The CH-47 chopper, was supporting military operations when it came down near Deh Chopan district in Zabul province, the U.S. military said in a statement, adding that ground forces are now present at the crash scene to provide security for recovery operations.

Gulab Shah, a spokesman for Zabul's governor said he received information from U.S. forces in the region that the chopper crashed while returning to its base after dropping off troops for a raid on rebel targets in the region.

"The weather was fine," Shah said.

The chopper crash brings to 195 the number of U.S. military personnel killed in and around Afghanistan since the occupation began in 2001.

Taliban claims responsibility

Mullah Latif Hakimi, Taliban spokesman called AP and claimed that members of his group shot down the helicopter, but he offered no evidence to prove his claim.

"Our men were standing on top of a mountain when the helicopter passed and we shot it," he said.

The copter crash comes amid notable surge in violence in the region that claimed the lives of more than 1,200 people in the past six months.

This is the third U.S. helicopter crash in one year.

U.S. Chinook was shot down last June in volatile eastern Kunar province near the border with Pakistan and all 16 U.S. forces on board were killed.

In April, another U.S. Chinook went down in a sandstorm killing 15 service members and three American civilians.