Fighters loyal to anti-Taliban warlord said to have opened fire on air force crew Earlier reports and defense ministry statements suggested the Air Force 777 Brigade helicopter had crashed KABUL: Nine people died when an Afghan air force helicopter was shot down in Maidan Wardak province, central Afghanistan, the Defense Ministry confirmed on Thursday. Four crew and five soldiers were on board the military MI-17 helicopter, which was shot down in the Behsud region, which has recently seen clashes between government forces and fighters led by anti-Taliban commander and ethnic warlord Abdul Ghani Alipur. Earlier reports and defense ministry statements suggested the Air Force 777 Brigade helicopter had crashed. "Those who martyred our comrades will be investigated and this heinous act will not go unanswered," Chief of Army Staff Gen. Yasin Zia said after confirming that the helicopter had been shot down. He did not identify the attackers. An army source speaking on condition of anonymity told Arab News that Alipur’s fighters fired at the helicopter with mortars. However, he could not explain why air force personnel were in the area. Tensions have been high in Behsud region since January when at least nine people were killed in clashes with government forces over the appointment of new police commanders in the area. Kabul initially said those killed were members of Alipur’s militia, while residents claimed the victims were civilians. Alipur, an ethnic Hazara warlord known as Commander Sword, is wanted on charges of murder, kidnapping and extortion. While his men control vast areas of the Behsud region and fight against the Taliban, he is seen as a headache for Kabul and its authority, which he has repeatedly challenged in the past. Alipur was arrested in a special operation in Kabul in late 2018, but was freed after a wave of violent protests by his Hazara and Shiite followers, who paralyzed the capital.