Indonesian envoy dies after Pakistan helicopter crash

Published May 19, 2015
Ambassador Burhan Muhammad, 58, was aboard the military helicopter, along with his wife when it crashed on May 8. — Courtesy www.radio.gov.pk
Ambassador Burhan Muhammad, 58, was aboard the military helicopter, along with his wife when it crashed on May 8. — Courtesy www.radio.gov.pk

JAKARTA: An Indonesian ambassador who was on a Pakistani military helicopter that crashed this month killing two other foreign envoys died Tuesday after battling severe burn injuries, Indonesia's foreign minister said.

Ambassador Burhan Muhammad, 58, was aboard the military helicopter, along with his wife and a delegation of ambassadors when it crashed on May 8 and set a school building ablaze in the Gilgit area of northern Pakistan.

His wife, the Norwegian and Filipino ambassadors, and the wife of the Malaysian envoy were killed immediately.

Read: Army copter crashes in Naltar; 7 die

Muhammad had severe injuries and had to be evacuated to a Singapore hospital last week.

“Indonesia's foreign ministry has just lost one of its best diplomats, Ambassador Burhan Muhammad, who passed away at 00:50 on May 19 local time in Singapore,” foreign minister Retno Marsudi said.

Muhammad and his wife are survived by their two sons.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif expressed deep grief and sorrow over Burhan's death.

Nawaz Sharif lauded late Ambassador's role in promoting friendship between Indonesia and Pakistan and prayed for the departed soul and courage to the bereaved family to bear their loss.

The Pakistani Taliban claimed to have struck the aircraft with a ground-to-air missile hoping to assassinate Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who was flying to the region at the same time, but the claim was rebutted by officials and multiple eye-witnesses, including foreign secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry.

Also read: Bodies of Naltar chopper crash victims flown to Nur Khan Airbase

The military and Pakistan's foreign office said the crash was due to a technical fault while landing. Officials added the school was shut at the time.

It was Pakistan's worst air crash since 2012, when a Boeing 737 passenger plane went down in Islamabad, killing 130 people.

Opinion

Editorial

Hard habits
30 Mar, 2025

Hard habits

FEELING the heat, the ruling elite has rolled out some big guns for the fight against national fragility. This week,...
Dreams of gold
30 Mar, 2025

Dreams of gold

PROSPECTS of the Reko Diq project taking off soon seem to have brightened lately following the completion of the...
No invitation
30 Mar, 2025

No invitation

FOR all of Pakistan’s hockey struggles, including their failure to qualify for the Olympics and World Cup as well...
New CEC?
Updated 29 Mar, 2025

New CEC?

The ruling parties should avoid getting involved in another controversy around the ECP.
Balochistan violence
Updated 29 Mar, 2025

Balochistan violence

How long can the state allow this unending cycle of violence in Balochistan to continue?
Turkiye protests
29 Mar, 2025

Turkiye protests

DAILY protests have continued in Turkiye since the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu on March 19. While the...