thedrifter
01-23-07, 07:45 AM
Evidence shows Army helicopter that crashed in Iraq may have been shot down
By: LOLITA C. BALDOR - Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON -- Investigators probing the scene of an Army helicopter crash in Iraq that killed a dozen U.S. soldiers have found evidence it may have been shot down, a senior military official said Monday.
Searchers at the scene found a tube that could be part of a shoulder-fired weapon that may have been used to shoot down the aircraft, said the official, who requested anonymity because the investigation was still continuing.
Col. David Sutherland, commander of U.S. forces in the Iraqi province of Diyala, has said the crash is still under investigation.
The Black Hawk crashed northeast of Baghdad on Saturday, a day when 25 U.S. troops were killed in Iraq. That made it the third-deadliest day since the war started in March 2003 -- surpassed only by the one-day toll of 37 U.S. fatalities on Jan. 26, 2005, and 28 on the third day of the U.S. invasion.
An al-Qaida-linked coalition of Iraqi Sunni insurgents claimed Monday that its fighters shot down the helicopter. The Islamic State in Iraq posted the claim on an Islamic Web site, saying that "the lions of Iraq's Islamic state managed to down a Black Hawk on Saturday, which was followed by a clash with the Crusaders, and that led to the destruction of two Humvees and the annihilation of those inside, thanks be to God."
The posting's authenticity could not be independently verified, but it appeared on a Web site used as a clearing house for militant statements. The Islamic State in Iraq is believed to be the political wing of al-Qaida in Iraq.
Ellie
By: LOLITA C. BALDOR - Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON -- Investigators probing the scene of an Army helicopter crash in Iraq that killed a dozen U.S. soldiers have found evidence it may have been shot down, a senior military official said Monday.
Searchers at the scene found a tube that could be part of a shoulder-fired weapon that may have been used to shoot down the aircraft, said the official, who requested anonymity because the investigation was still continuing.
Col. David Sutherland, commander of U.S. forces in the Iraqi province of Diyala, has said the crash is still under investigation.
The Black Hawk crashed northeast of Baghdad on Saturday, a day when 25 U.S. troops were killed in Iraq. That made it the third-deadliest day since the war started in March 2003 -- surpassed only by the one-day toll of 37 U.S. fatalities on Jan. 26, 2005, and 28 on the third day of the U.S. invasion.
An al-Qaida-linked coalition of Iraqi Sunni insurgents claimed Monday that its fighters shot down the helicopter. The Islamic State in Iraq posted the claim on an Islamic Web site, saying that "the lions of Iraq's Islamic state managed to down a Black Hawk on Saturday, which was followed by a clash with the Crusaders, and that led to the destruction of two Humvees and the annihilation of those inside, thanks be to God."
The posting's authenticity could not be independently verified, but it appeared on a Web site used as a clearing house for militant statements. The Islamic State in Iraq is believed to be the political wing of al-Qaida in Iraq.
Ellie