Pakistan's military brought the bodies of two ambassadors and two ambassadors' wives to Islamabad on Saturday, a day after they were killed in a helicopter crash in northern mountains as they where inspecting a tourism project.
The ambassadors of Norway and the Philippines and the wives of the Malaysian and Indonesian envoys were killed when the helicopter they were on crashed in the Gilgit region.
Three Pakistani crewmen were also killed and several diplomats were injured when the Mi-17 helicopter came down on a school in a valley lined by pine forests and overlooked by snow-peaked mountains.
No children were in the school at the time.
The government says the aircraft suffered engine failure, dismissing as bogus a Pakistani Taliban claim that the militants shot it down.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was also going to the inauguration of a ski lift and was on a separate helicopter when the accident happened.
Pakistani servicemen formed a guard of honour to receive the coffins, draped in national flags and bedecked with wreaths, as soldiers carried them from the aircraft that brought them from the north. The ceremony was broadcast live on television.
Diplomats in black and the military's top brass, including army chief General Raheel Sharif, were on hand and the commanders saluted as the coffins were carried by. Raheel put his arm around a sobbing boy among the diplomats.
Pakistan declared a day of mourning and Nawaz has ordered cabinet ministers to accompany the bodies of the four foreign victims to their countries.
The government said 17 people were on board and among the injured were the ambassadors of Poland and the Netherlands.
Gilgit is not a militant den and the Taliban often claim responsibility for incidents that they had nothing to do with.
PM Nawaz calls Malaysian counterpart, expresses grief over death of envoy’s wife
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday called his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak d expressed sorry over the death of the Malaysian ambassador’ss wife.
The spouse of the Malaysian ambassasdor was among seven people killed when a MI-17 helicopter Naltar Valley of Gilgit on Friday.
On May 08, a MI-17 helicopter crash in the Naltar Valley in Gilgit-Baltistan killed seven people including Ambassador of Philippines Domingo D Lucenario Jr, Ambassador of Norway Leif Larsen, wives of the Malaysian and Indonesian ambassadors, two Pakistan Army majors and a Subedar.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has deputed three cabinet ministers to accompany the bodies of envoys and spouses who lost their lives in the tragic crash.
