Four US Army special operations soldiers were presumed killed when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed this week during a routine training exercise in a remote area of Washington state near Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the Army said on Friday.

The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk went down at about 9pm PDT on Wednesday in rugged terrain near the base, located about 15 miles southeast of Tacoma, Washington, according to Jacqui Hill, spokesperson for the US Army Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

No survivors were found among the four personnel who were aboard the aircraft, all members of the elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, 4th Battalion, assigned to Lewis-McChord, she said.

Dubbed “Night Stalkers,” this airborne unit is known for its expertise in conducting operations under the cover of darkness and for pioneering the Army’s nighttime flying tactics.

“They were elite warriors who embodied our highest values of the Army and the Army Special Operations, and their sacrifice will never be forgotten,” Lieutenant General Jonathan Braga said of the four fallen soldiers in a statement.

Hill said efforts to reach the accident site were complicated by the remote location, fire from the crash and thick vegetation, and that recovery operations were continuing on Friday.

The United States is in discussions with the Taliban about re-establishing a small US military presence at Afghanistan’s Bagram air base as a launch point for counterterrorism operations, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people with knowledge of the negotiations.

The Journal, citing a US official, also reported that the talks, headed by Special Envoy for Hostage Response Adam Boehler, include a potential prisoner exchange, a possible economic deal, and a security component.

This is a developig story and is being updated with more details.

Pakistan has extended its airspace ban for all Indian-registered and Indian-operated aircraft, including military planes, for another month, the Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) said on Friday.

According to a new NOTAM (Notice to Airmen), the restriction bars Indian commercial airlines, India-registered aircraft, and military flights from entering Pakistani airspace.

Pakistan closed its airspace for Indian airlines in a tit-for-tat move after New Delhi suspended the critical Indus Water Treaty amid heightened bilateral tensions following the deadly Pahalgam attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

Following Pakistan’s decision, India shut its airspace to Pakistani airlines on April 30. Pakistan’s initial restriction was extended on May 23 for another month.

The latest extension brings the total duration of Pakistan’s airspace closure for Indian aircraft to 210 days.

On May 6-7, India launched unprovoked attacks on multiple Pakistani cities.

In response, Pakistan’s armed forces launched a large-scale retaliatory military action, named “Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos”, and targeted several Indian military targets across multiple regions.

The strikes, described by officials as “precise and proportionate”, were carried out in response to India’s continued aggression across the Line of Control (LoC) and within Pakistan’s territory, which New Delhi claimed were aimed at “terrorist targets”.

Pakistan downed its six fighter jets, including three Rafale, and dozens of drones. After at least 87 hours, the war between the two nuclear-armed nations ended on May 10 with a ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States.

While India’s aviation industry has faced heavy losses, the impact on Pakistani aviation has been minimal.

This is not the first time Pakistan has imposed such restrictions. Airspace closures were previously enacted during the 1999 Kargil conflict and the 2019 Pulwama crisis, both instances in which India faced greater aviation disruptions than Pakistan.