The World : Soviet Plane Downing Told

Muslim guerrillas shot down a Soviet-built transport plane in Afghanistan last week, killing all 43 people on board, Western diplomats in Pakistan reported. The diplomats, quoting sources they regard as reliable, said an AN-26, a short-range transport plane, was downed by a ground-to-air missile near the provincial capital of Balkh, bordering the Soviet Union. The diplomats said most of the 43 passengers and crew on the flight were military personnel. The downing of the plane, the second such incident this month, has not been reported by the Kabul government, although the June 11 downing of an AN-26 and the deaths of 53 of 55 aboard was reported.