Damaged cable blamed for Russian rocket crash in Kazakhstan

A team of investigators say a damaged control cable caused last month's crash of the Proton-M rocket in Kazakhstan.

Scienists says the cable caused an engine malfunction and a second-stage separation failure during the launch.

The carrier rocket crashed with almost 219 tons of toxic fuel on board, sparking fears of an ecological disaster. 

It also prompted claims for more than $US 60 million in compensation from the Kazakh government.

All launches of Proton type missiles have been halted.