July 29, 2010 8:44 AM

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152 people killed in Pak passenger plane crash near Islamabad

All 152 people on board a commercial Pakistani Airbus 321, belonging to private airline Airblue, were killed when it crashed in heavy rain near the capital, Islamabad. Two Americans were among the victims, a US embassy spokesman told Reuters.Imtiaz Elahi, chairman of Islamabad's Capital Development Authority told Reuters that there are no survivors and authorities are recovering the remains of the dead bodies from the wreckage. The Airbus 321, belonging to private airline Airblue, crashed into a heavily wooded and hard-to-access hillside while flying from the southern port city of Karachi.Rescuers said they had to dig through the rubble with their bare hands, with fire and thick smoke hampering their work. The fire has since been extinguished, but access to the hillside remained limited to pedestrians and helicopters.The military said it had sent three helicopters to the site and troops had also been moved there. Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani was surveying rescue operations from the air and the government declared Thursday a day of mourning for the victims.The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh has expressed grief and shock over the tragic plane crash in Islamabad. In a message to his Pakistani counterpart, Mr. Yousuf Raza Gilani, Dr. Singh condoled the loss of lives in the tragedy.

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