Taliban militants have claimed that a US military aircraft crashed in Ghazni, central Afghanistan, killing everyone on board. A statement quoted by Reuters has specified that it was brought down. The US military is investigating.
A Taliban spokesman has affirmed the group’s responsibility for the crash, saying that the aircraft’s crew and everyone on board, including what he claimed were high-ranking officers, were killed on the spot.
The so-far unverified claim includes a suggestion that the officers belonged to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Earlier in the day, footage of charred remains of a crashed aircraft emerged online. It appears to be the Bombardier/Northrop Grumman E-11A — a surveillance and communications plane, employed by the US Air Force. The wreckage features distinctive markings used by the US military.
Meanwhile, pictures of a USAF plane, with a serial number that appears to match that on the tail section of the filmed wreckage, has emerged on social media.