Russian Security Services Helicopter Crashes In Chechnya, Several Killed

At least five people have died when a Russian security services helicopter crashed in Russia’s Chechnya region Wednesday.

Moscow Times, which cited RIA Novosti news agency in Russia, first reported that seven people were killed, but later modified the number and said five were dead. A total of nine people were said to be on board the helicopter.

BBC News reported that the helicopter belonged to the Border Guard Service and it was said to be a Mi-8 helicopter.

"According to the preliminary data, a special forces' helicopter crashed, killing at least five people out of nine, being aboard," a source told Sputnik News.

According to the source, the emergency response group has not reached the scene where the crash took place. At the same time, according to a medical source at the Russian Emergencies Ministry, two medical brigades were sent to the site of the crash.

Chechnya, a republic in southwestern Russia, in the Caucasus Mountains region has been the hub of an Islamist insurgency, with severe clashes between rebels and security forces throughout the years.

Chechnya began the fight for its independence in 1991 when Russia sent its troops to stop the rebellion. In 1996, a peace accord was signed and Russian troops were withdrawn from the region.

In 2002, Chechen rebels attacked a theater in Moscow and held numerous people hostage. Russian forces used an unknown gas substance to subdue the rebels, as a result of which 41 of the militants and 149 hostages died at the theater. Similarly, in 2003, a suicide bomb attack killed 16 at a concert in Moscow. Clashes have been occurring throughout the years, although it is said to have been on a decline in the past few years.

On Tuesday, an Antonov An-26 Russian transport plane crashed at Russia’s Khmeimim airbase in Syria, which killed all 39 people on board the plane. The aircraft was not shot down, but the crash was reportedly caused by a technical malfunction, according to Russian website Meduza.