The bush legacy of death....
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Six US soldiers dead as Blackhawk crashes in Iraq
13 minutes ago
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TIKRIT, Iraq (AFP) - Six US soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division were killed when a Blackhawk helicopter was "forced down" outside an American base near the northern Iraqi city of Tikrit, US military officials confirmed.
"The total number of people on board was six. All six have died," Major Josselyn Aberle, a spokeswoman for the 4th Infantry Division (4ID) in the northern city, told reporters Friday.
"They were all from the 101st Airborne Division. They were in a Blackhawk helicopter transporting personnel from Mosul to Tikrit on a routine flight. The cause is still being investigated."
White smoke could be seen rising from a strip of land in the middle of the Tigris River where the helicopter went down just outside the 4ID Ironhorse base.
While the military said the crash was under investigation, one witness claimed the helicopter was knocked out of the sky.
"I saw one of the helicopters shot from the side and I saw smoke and a ball of fire. I felt happy and started shouting Allahu Akbar (God is greatest)," said Saqr Ghani.
"I then ran to the car and immediately headed to the river bank where I saw the helicopter cut in two pieces."
Another resident, farmer Abu Ahmed, said he had heard a loud blast and saw smoking rising from where the helicopter crashed.
Aberle said officials were looking into reports that loud booms were heard just before the Blackhawk went down.
Lieutenant Colonel Bill MacDonald, also a 4ID spokesman, said "the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter went down in Tikrit on the east side of the Tigris river near the main palace complex" at 9:40 am (0640 GMT).
US tanks had sealed off roads on the river bank as they searched for the remains and sifted through the wreckage.
Tikrit, 180 kilometers (110 miles) north of Baghdad, is the home town of deposed president Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) and a stronghold of his supporters. It has been the scene of frequent attacks against the US-led coalition occuying Iraq (news - web sites).
On Sunday, a Chinook transport helicopter was shot down by a ground-fired missile near Fallujah, another flashpoint town 50 kilometers (30 miles) west of Baghdad, killing 16 soldiers and wounding 26.
A Blackhawk was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade just outside Tikrit on October 25. |
