A United Nations helicopter has crashed in Nepal, killing at least ten people.
Police from remote Ramechhap district, located 85km east of Kathmandu, said ten people were killed when the helicopter caught fire and crashed in heavy rain and wind.
A team of 12 police officers has reached the site, but their recovery work has been hampered by weather conditions and hilly terrain.
The helicopter burned for around three hours before locals and police officers doused the flames.
A UN spokesman confirmed that it had lost radio contact with one of its helicopters returning from a visit to a Maoist camp in east Nepal.
The UN was invited to assist in monitoring a landmark peace deal reached between Nepal's former rebel Maoists and the government in November 2006.
Nepal's mountainous terrain and lack of roads means helicopters are commonly used for transportation by government officials and development workers.
