LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) — A military chopper crashed in Marja district of the southern Helmand province on Tuesday, with casualties feared, a local official said.

“The helicopter crashed in Sepon area of Marja district,” the official told Xinhua but declined to be identified, saying authorized officials would brief the media after completion of investigation.

However, the official added that the crashed chopper probably belonged to foreign forces which backed the national security forces during military operations against militants in Marja district.

Taliban fighters have been fighting over the past couple of months to capture the strategically important Marja and Sangin districts of Helmand province.

This is the second chopper crashed in the conflict-ridden Afghanistan over the past three days.

Previously, a chopper was crashed in the eastern Logar province on Sunday killing three soldiers and injuring another.