Officer: Iraq military helicopter crashes, crew dead

An Iraqi military helicopter crashed Wednesday near Baiji, around 200 kilometers (120 miles) north of Baghdad, killing the crew, a senior officer and residents said.

An army colonel said the cause of the crash was not immediately clear but residents in Seiniye, where the helicopter went down, said it had been hit by jihadist fighters.

“The helicopter was on its way back from Baiji. The entire crew was killed,” the officer said, without specifying how many died in the crash.

A resident described the helicopter as “completely charred.”

Iraqi federal forces have been battling the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria group at the Baiji oil refinery since the beginning of the jihadist offensive in early June.