|
13 dead as US helicopter shot down
A US Chinook helicopter has been shot down in Iraq, killing at least thirteen people on board and wounding 20. The helicopter, which was hit as it flew towards Baghdad airport, came down near the village of Baisa, south of Falluja. A US spokesman said that the helicopter was one of two Chinooks heading towards Baghdad carrying personnel on a rest and recreation trip. He said that the helicopter, carrying 30 people including five crew, had been "shot down by an unknown weapon". Witnesses said that two surface-to-air missiles had been fired but that only one hit its target. Troops kept reporters back from the crash site as another military helicopter with a red cross sign landed. Another US soldier died when his vehicle drove over a bomb planted on a road in Baghdad. The soldier, who was from the 1st Armored Division, was evacuated to hospital after the explosion but died a few hours later. More, from CNN, courtesy Rafael... Anyone up for resumption of major combat in Iraq? Iâd say itâs time to do some major ass kicking. The U.S. death toll from a downed Chinook helicopter near Fallujah, has risen to 13, military officials said. The helicopter was shot down by a shoulder-type ??? probably French-made missile, about 60 kilometers west of the Iraqi capital Baghdad, at 8 a.m. Sunday, witnesses told CNN. It was one of three separate attacks Sunday, which saw at least one other U.S. servicemen killed in a convoy attack in Baghdad at about midnight. It is the deadliest combat day for the U.S. since March 23, the day 28 American troops died in battle. Between 32 and 35 people from the Armyâs 82nd Airborne Division were traveling on the Chinook, which was one of two flying to the Baghdad International Airport from a U.S. base camp. A second convoy was attacked in Fallujah, about an hour before the Chinook incident, but it is not clear whether any injuries were sustained. CNNâs Matthew Chance said crowds of Iraqis gathered quickly in the "flashpoint" city chanting anti-U.S. slogans. The attacks came as coalition forces were on alert for a threatened "day of resistance," following a warning from the U.S. Consulate Office in Baghdad. The consulate said U.S. military patrols, hotels, markets, and non-governmental organizations could be among the sites attacked. "could be"??? In a bid to boost security and stability, U.S. administrator for Iraq Paul Bremer said the United States is stepping up efforts to hand over more responsibility to Iraqis themselves. Coalition forces will speed up the training of Iraqi police and military, he said, and the size of the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps will be doubled by March. "We will have over 200,000 Iraqis involved in their own security forces by September next year," Bremer added. Despite the attacks, the U.S.-led coalition had been able to reopen justice courts, build jails and recruit 50,000 Iraqi police officers. A coalition military official said 33 attempted attacks are made against U.S. troops every day. Coalition officials blame forces loyal to ousted Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, terrorist groups and other insurgents for the attacks. Bremer said officials believe Saddam is alive and in Iraq, though there is "no indication" he is behind the attacks. But he added: "His capture, or killing him, is one of the top priorities." Yes Iâd say so. Iâm surprised heâs managed to evade capture for this long, if heâs still in Iraq.
And more detail, from Chi Tribune, courtesy of Steve White... Insurgents shot down a U.S. Chinook helicopter in central Iraq on Sunday as it carried troops headed for R&R, killing 15 soldiers and wounding 21 in the deadliest single strike against American troops since the start of war. Damn! The aircraft was hit at about 9 a.m. and crashed amid cornfields near the village of Hasi, about 40 miles southwest of Baghdad and just south of Fallujah, a center of Sunni Muslim resistance to the U.S. occupation. Fallujah, the new parking lot for the US Army in Iraq. At the scene, villagers proudly showed off blackened pieces of wreckage to arriving reporters. Round up each one and beat âem with clubs. NO ONE displays wreckage where our soldiers die. "This was a new lesson from the resistance, a lesson to the greedy aggressors," one Fallujah resident, who wouldnât give his name, said of the helicopter downing. "Theyâll never be safe until they get out of our country," he said of the Americans. But before we leave, weâre going to deal with you and your pals.
Dammit, we have to get all the ammo dumps secured. The 10-ton Chinook â the militaryâs heavy-lifting workhorse used primarily for moving troops and equipment â was the biggest U.S. target yet shot from the skies. The downed craft belonged to the Armyâs 12th Aviation Brigade, supporting the 82nd Airborne Division Task Force. A U.S. military spokesman, Col. William Darley, confirmed the casualty count of 15 dead and 21 wounded. Some of the American troops killed in the downing were believed to be from Fort Carson, Colo., post spokesman Lt. Col. Thomas Budzyna said. The helicopter was part of a formation of two Chinooks carrying a total of more than 50 passengers to the U.S. base at the former Saddam International Airport, renamed Baghdad International Airport, which the military calls BIA. "Our initial report is that they were being transported to BIA for R&R flights," a U.S. command spokeswoman in Baghdad said. She said at least some were coming from Camp Ridgway, believed to be an 82nd Airborne Division base in western Iraq. Command spokesman Darley said he didnât know whether the troops were bound for leaves at home or abroad outside Iraq.
Time to clean out the Sunni triangle. Bastards. Posted by: Bulldog 2003-11-02 |
||||
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=20674 |