MADRID, Aug. 16 (Xinhuanet) -- The military helicopter that crashed in Afghanistan with 17 Spanish troops on board could have been the target of an "outside attack," Spanish Defense Minister Jose Bono said on Tuesday.

    After analyzing a picture of the crash site, Bono said he couldnot rule out the possibility that the helicopter was shot down.

    The helicopter was on an integration flight for the Spanish Armed Forces as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) deployed in Afghanistan by the UN.

    "At first the hypothesis of an accident was the only one considered, but after seeing the picture we have seen it happened in a very mountainous area," Bono said in a statement after the crash occurred.

    Spanish head of state Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero is expectedto cut short his holiday in Madrid to meet with Bono. Enditem