KABUL): Foreign Minister Dr. Zalmai Rassoul on Saturday shared his greif with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoğlu over a helicopter crash that left a dozen Turkish soldiers dead in Kabul.
Two Afghan women were also killed when a Turkish helicopter crashed into a three-storey house in the Bagrami district on Friady.
Rassoul telephoned Davutoğlu and expressed condolences and sympathy over the incident on behalf of Afghan government and people to the government and people of Turkey.
He paid homage to the sacrifices of Turkish soldiers for peace and security in Afghanistan on behalf of the Afghans and their government, a statement issued from the Afghan foreign ministry said.
The foreign minister praised Turkey’s generous assistance to the reconstruction of Afghanistan over the past decade.
During the telephonic conversation, Rassoul and Davutoğlu agreed that the loss of Turkish soldiers was a shared tragedy for both countries.
Davutoğlu also reiterated Turkey’s continued and long-term support and assistance to Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, officials said bodies of the 12 Turkish soldiers killed in the crash, appeared to be a technical failure, were on Sunday flown back to Ankara in special aircraft.
NATO commanders, Turkish ambassador and Afghan Chief of Army Staff Shir Mohammad Karimi were present on the occasion.
In a statement, the Turkish embassy in Kabul expressed deep sadness over the death of their 12 soldiers and two Afghan civilians.
It said Turkey would continue supporting Afghanistan. Turkey’s mission in Afghanistan is limited to patrols and its soldiers do not take part in combat operations. It has more than 1,800 soldiers serving in the country, most of them around the capital.
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