Eight Turk engineers, Afghan helicopter pilot taken hostage KABUL, Afghanistan, April 22 (UPI) -- Insurgents took eight Turkish engineers and an Afghan pilot hostage after their helicopter made an emergency landing in eastern Afghanistan, officials said. The private helicopter, proceeding to Kabul from a NATO base in Khost province, landed late Sunday in the Azra district in neighboring Logar province because of an equipment malfunction and was immediately surrounded by Taliban insurgents, CNN reported, quoting local officials. The helicopter was carrying food and other supplies for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, the report said. The Taliban, in a text message to news outlets, said its members had forced the helicopter down, CNN reported. The report said engineers and others in the country often travel by helicopter to avoid going on roads in areas where there is much insurgent activity. Local officials and tribal elders were trying to secure the hostages' release, officials said. There was no immediate reaction from the Turkish foreign ministry, which said it was studying the various reports.