US military officials have announced the crash of a commercial Bulgarian Mi-8 helicopter in Iraq which killed nine people.
The Russian-made helicopter is thought to have been struck by anti-aircraft fire while it was in the air over Bagdat (Bagdad) and military sources have informed that three crew members along with six passengers were on board.
Bulgarian Foreign Ministry report no information on the accident.
Insurgents have frequently targeted US helicopters causing many to crash. In November 2003, a US Chinook was shot down, crashing in the west of Baghdad and killing at least 16 US soldiers but this is the first time a civilian helicopter has been targetted.