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Seventeen aboard crashed US chopper in Afghanistan

Posted on: Wednesday, 29 June 2005, 08:28 CDT

By David Brunnstrom

KABUL (Reuters) - A U.S. military helicopter that crashedduring an anti-guerrilla mission in eastern Afghanistan mayhave been shot down and the fate of 17 U.S. troops aboard isnot immediately known, the U.S. military said on Wednesday.

Initial reports indicated Tuesday's crash in Kunarprovince, which borders Pakistan, may have been caused byhostile fire in the operation against al Qaeda militants, themilitary said.

The twin-rotor CH-47 Chinook came down in remote andmountainous terrain west of Kunar's capital Asadabad, U.S.spokeswoman Lieutenant Cindy Moore said.

Kunar Governor Asadullah Wafa said it was hit by a rocketand a spokesman for the Taliban, Abdul Latif Hakimi, claimedthe guerrillas shot down the aircraft in the village of Shorakusing "a new type of weapon" he did not describe.

"Initial reports indicate the crash may have been caused byhostile fire, a U.S. statement said. "The status of the servicemembers is unknown at this time."

It said U.S. and Afghan troops had sealed off the crashsite to block any enemy movement toward or away from it andU.S. aircraft were flying overhead.

"This is a tragic event," U.S. Brig-Gen Greg Champion saidin the statement. "Our hearts and prayers go out to thefamilies, loved ones and service members still fighting in thearea."

Kunar police chief Abdul Ghafar Momand said the helicopterwas thought have come down either in Shorai, around 15 km (10miles) from Asadabad, or on a mountain between neighboringMarogai and Ghaziabad districts.

"Trees caught fire on the mountain and that may have beencaused by the crash, he said.

The U.S. military said the Chinook had been taking part in"Operation Red Wing," aimed at defeating al Qaeda militantscarrying out harassing attacks and intelligence-gathering.

SECOND CHINOOK CRASH

The crash was the second of a U.S. Chinook in Afghanistanin less than three months.

Another came down in a dust storm in Ghazni province onApril 6, killing 18 Americans, including 15 troops, thedeadliest military air accident since Washington first deployedtroops to the country and overthrew the Taliban in 2001."

At least 14 other U.S. troops have been killed in increasedmilitant activity since March aimed at derailing Sept. 18parliamentary elections, the next big step in Afghanistan'sdifficult path to stability.

Several U.S. military helicopters have crashed inAfghanistan since 2001. Two Chinooks were hit byrocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire in the southwestlast week and one was forced to make an emergency landing.

The Taliban's Hakimi said 35 Americans died in Tuesday'scrash after the guerrillas killed 7 U.S. "spies" on the ground,but his reports have often proven exaggerated or incorrect.

"This is a huge success for the Taliban," he said, addingthat the guerrillas had video of the crash and would postphotographs on their Web Site (www.alemarah.com). The site didnot appear to have been updated on Wednesday.

In early June, the U.S. military said a helicopter had beenattacked in Uruzgan province by a suspected surface-to-airmissile. Such weapons, supplied by the United States, were usedto great effect by guerrillas fighting Soviet occupiers in the1980s, but the Taliban have not been known to use them.

The Afghan government vowed on Tuesday the polls would beheld on time despite the violence and that fighting in thesouthwest last week, which the U.S. military says killed 77guerrillas, showed the weakness of the Taliban.

The United States leads a foreign force of about 20,000mostly U.S. troops pursuing militants in Afghanistan more thanthree and half years after toppling the Taliban for failing tohand over Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda leadersresponsible for the Sept. 11 attacks on U.S. cities in 2001.

(Additional reporting by Yousuf Azimy in KABUL and SaeedAli Achakzai in CHAMAN, Pakistan)

Source: REUTERS

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