Pakistan military plane crashes in residential area killing 15

At least 15 people have been killed after a small military plane crashed into a residential area in the Pakistani city of Rawalpindi, rescue officials have said, reports BBC.

Five crew members and 10 civilians are dead, a rescue spokesman said. Another 12 people have been injured.

The aircraft was on a training flight when it crash and set off a fire which engulfed several houses.

Rawalpindi, near the capital Islamabad, is the site of the army's headquarters.

It was not immediately clear what caused the crash.

A crowd of local residents, some sobbing, gathered at the residential area where the incident occurred, said news agency AFP.

Pictures from the scene showed blackened buildings that had been reduced to rubble.

A reporter from AFP said smoke was still rising from the wreckage, adding that pieces of the plane were visible on a nearby roof.

In 2010, an aircraft operated by private airline Airblue crashed near Islamabad, killing all 152 people on board - the deadliest air disaster in Pakistani history.