YANGON — Kachin ethnic rebels battling Myanmar's army in the country's north said they shot down a government helicopter, but the army denied the claim, saying Saturday that the chopper crashed due to engine failure. An emailed announcement from the Kachin guerrillas said they shot down the helicopter late Friday as heavy fighting raged. Myanmar's deputy information minister and presidential spokesman, Ye Htut, confirmed on his Facebook page that a government helicopter had crashed, but said engine failure was to blame. He described the accident as an “emergency landing.” It was the first helicopter crash since the military started launching air strikes against the Kachin in the last week of December. Both the government and the guerrillas have made misleading statements in the past about the fighting, which is in a remote area difficult for independent observers to access.— AP
