At least five people have died when a Russian security services helicopter crashed in Russia’s Chechnya region Wednesday.

Moscow Times, which cited RIA Novosti news agency in Russia, first reported that seven people were killed, but later modified the number and said five were dead. A total of nine people were said to be on board the helicopter.

BBC News reported that the helicopter belonged to the Border Guard Service and it was said to be a Mi-8 helicopter.

"According to the preliminary data, a special forces' helicopter crashed, killing at least five people out of nine, being aboard," a source told Sputnik News.

According to the source, the emergency response group has not reached the scene where the crash took place. At the same time, according to a medical source at the Russian Emergencies Ministry, two medical brigades were sent to the site of the crash.

Chechnya, a republic in southwestern Russia, in the Caucasus Mountains region has been the hub of an Islamist insurgency, with severe clashes between rebels and security forces throughout the years.

Chechnya began the fight for its independence in 1991 when Russia sent its troops to stop the rebellion. In 1996, a peace accord was signed and Russian troops were withdrawn from the region.

In 2002, Chechen rebels attacked a theater in Moscow and held numerous people hostage. Russian forces used an unknown gas substance to subdue the rebels, as a result of which 41 of the militants and 149 hostages died at the theater. Similarly, in 2003, a suicide bomb attack killed 16 at a concert in Moscow. Clashes have been occurring throughout the years, although it is said to have been on a decline in the past few years.

On Tuesday, an Antonov An-26 Russian transport plane crashed at Russia’s Khmeimim airbase in Syria, which killed all 39 people on board the plane. The aircraft was not shot down, but the crash was reportedly caused by a technical malfunction, according to Russian website Meduza.</s>MOSCOW, March 7. /TASS/. A Mil Mi-8 multipurpose helicopter crashed in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Chechnya, a spokesman for the local emergencies services told TASS on Wednesday.

"According to preliminary information, up to eight people were killed in the incident," the spokesman said. "The information on casualties is being verified."

He added that the helicopter presumably belonged to the Border Guard Service.</s>A Mil Mi-8 multipurpose helicopter believe to belong to the Border Guard Service has crashed in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Chechnya.

A spokesman for local emergency services said: “According to preliminary information, up to eight people were killed in the incident.

"The information on casualties is being verified."

Russian media reports at least nine people are believed to have been on board the helicopter when it crashed.</s>A Mil Mi-8 multipurpose helicopter believe to belong to the Border Guard Service has crashed in Russia’s North Caucasus republic of Chechnya.

A spokesman for local emergency services said: “"According to preliminary information, up to eight people were killed in the incident.

"The information on casualties is being verified."

Russian media reports at least nine people are believed to have been on board the helicopter when it crashed.

"Indeed, a helicopter has crashed in the south of Chechnya," a law enforcement officer told Russia’s Interfax news agency, which reports five people were killed in the incident.

This is a breaking news story, refresh the page for updates.</s>Moscow: At least eight people were killed in a Mi-8 helicopter crash in south Russia’s Chechnya Republic on Wednesday, authorities said.

The aircraft reportedly belonged to the Border Guard Service, TASS news agency reported.

“According to preliminary information, up to eight people were killed in the incident,” a spokesman for the local emergencies services told the news agency.

“The information on casualties is being verified,” he said.</s>At least six killed in helicopter crash in Chechnya

Reports from Russia’s North Caucasus region of Chechnya say at least six people have been killed in a helicopter crash near the border with Georgia.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said the Russian-built Mi-8 helicopter belonged to Chechnya’s border guard service.

Kadyrov said “complicated weather conditions” may have caused the crash on March 7 in the mountains of southern Chechnya.

Chechnya’s Health Ministry said one person was found alive by rescue workers and rushed to a hospital.

Earlier reports said nine people were aboard the helicopter at the time of the crash.</s>At least six people died after a Mi-8 helicopter crashed Wednesday in southwestern Russia's Chechnya.

According to Russian news agencies, rescuers found two survivors at the crash site.

Nine people were on board of the helicopter that belonged to the Russian border service.

Local emergency services said the helicopter crashed 8 kilometers (5 miles) from Russia's border with Georgia.

Officials said the helicopter crashed in thick fog after its rotor clipped a mountainside while preparing to land.

The twin-engine Mi-8 has been a mainstay of Soviet and Russian aviation since the late 1960s and also has been widely used worldwide.</s>Authorities in Russia's province of Chechnya say that at least three people have died in a helicopter crash in the North Caucasus mountains.

Local authorities say in a statement carried by Russian news agencies that the Mi-8 helicopter belonging to the border guards went down Wednesday in the Itum-Kale region of southern Chechnya, near the border with Georgia.

Officials said the helicopter crashed in thick fog after its rotor clipped a mountainside while preparing to land. Rescuers have found one survivor and recovered three bodies. It was believed that several other people were on board, and they are still missing.

The twin-engine Mi-8 has been a mainstay of Soviet and Russian aviation since the late 1960s and also has been widely used worldwide.</s>A Mi-8 helicopter crashed in Russia’s region of Chechnya, leaving five people dead, Sputnik reported.

“According to the preliminary data, a special forces’ helicopter crashed, killing at least five people out of nine, being aboard,” a source said.

According to the source, the emergency response group hasn’t reached the scene of the crash yet.

The authorities haven’t commented on the incident yet.

At the same time, Sputnik quotes a medical source at the Russian Emergencies Ministry, two medical brigades have headed to the crash site.</s>At least five people were killed when a Russian security services helicopter crashed in Russia's Chechnya region, the state-run RIA Novosti news agency reported on Wednesday.

The agency had initially reported there were seven dead, but later said at least five were killed. Russian news agencies said there were a total of nine people on board.

Chechnya has been the scene of an Islamist insurgency, with sporadic clashes between rebels and security forces. The violence has though subsided in the past few years.
A Russian Border Guard Service Mil Mi-8 crashes in Chechnya, killing at least eight people.