NATO troops work to recover downed chopper

KABUL, Afghanistan?? International military forces worked on Monday to recover every last piece of a Chinook helicopter that crashed over the weekend, killing 30 American troops, seven Afghan soldiers and an Afghan interpreter, NATO said.

1. Only on msnbc.com

   1. Fallen SEAL was ?willing to give his life'
   2. 9 out of 10 preschoolers' lunches reach unsafe temps
   3. Exiled leader: Dalai Lama?s return to Tibet ?possible?
   4. Startup generation ready to fix economy
   5. Sad truth behind the London riot
   6. New homes for older couples add 'snore rooms'
   7. Your Career: The most dangerous summer jobs

German Brig. Gen. Carsten Jacobson, a spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition, told reporters that troops had secured the crash site in a rugged area of eastern Wardak province and nobody was being allowed in or out of the area while the investigation was ongoing.

Jacobson said the coalition still had not yet determined the exact cause of the crash, but some officials have said the heavy and lumbering transport helicopter was apparently shot down. Officials said the helicopter was hit as it was flying in and approaching the area.

"We are still investigating this incident so we have no picture of what was the cause for the incident. That is what the investigation is basically all about," Jacobson said.

Video: Fallen SEAL was ?willing to give his life' (on this page)

The helicopter was ferrying a group of Navy SEALs to reinforce a group of Army Rangers who were under fire. It remains unclear if the Rangers and SEALs were taking part in a night raid to capture or kill an insurgent leader.

It was deadliest single loss for U.S. forces in the decade-long war.

Another NATO helicopter crashed in Afghanistan's east on Monday but there were no apparent casualties, officials said, another stark reminder of the dangers of the war.

NATO said the cause of the hard landing in Paktia province was under investigation. The coalition said there was no enemy activity in the area at the time.

The helicopter was a CH-47 flying in to pick up special operations troops, but apparently suffered a mechanical failure and crash-landed, an officer in the war zone told The Associated Press. He could not be named because he was not authorized to comment publicly. The crew was rescued by the troops.

Thirty Americans and eight Afghans ? seven commandos and a civilian translator ? were killed in the crash on Saturday.

A current and a former U.S. official told the AP that the Americans included 22 SEALs, three Air Force members and a dog handler and his dog. The two spoke on condition of anonymity because military officials were still notifying the families of the dead.

Story: Navy SEAL?s widow: ?We were blessed to be together?

There were conflicting accounts late Sunday as to whether the SEAL team had subdued the attackers who had pinned down the Rangers and were departing, or whether they were hit as they tried to land. One official told the AP they had accomplished their mission, but another said it was hit as it approached.

But NBC News reported Monday that according to three U.S. officials, the team was on its way to the mission when it was shot down.

All but two of the SEALs were from SEAL Team 6, the unit that killed Osama bin Laden, officials said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.

The Rangers, special operations forces who work regularly with the SEALs, secured the crash site in the Tangi Joy Zarin area of Wardak province, about 60 miles southwest of Kabul, one of the officials said.

Many of the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was still ongoing.

Clandestine tactics
The heavy loss over the weekend shows that clandestine tactics carry huge risks despite the huge success of the SEAL mission that killed Osama bin Laden more than three months ago. Most of the SEALs who died Saturday were from the same unit that killed bin Laden, although none of the men took part in that mission.

The U.S.-led coalition plans to rely more on special operations missions as it reduces the overall number of combat troops by the end of 2014.

Video: Mom of fallen SEAL: 'I'm so proud of my son' (on this page)

Eight Taliban fighters were also killed in the battle, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement.

Spike in casualties
At least another seven ISAF troops were killed in fighting in a ghastly 48 hours for the coalition. Four were killed in two separate attacks on Sunday, including two French legionnaires.

Foreign military deaths also hit record levels in 2010 with 711 killed, with 2011 following a similarly bloody trend.

The spike in casualties ? at least 383 foreign troops have been killed so far this year, almost 50 of them in the first week of August, according to Reuters ? comes at a time of growing unease about the increasingly unpopular and costly war.

Story: Family, friends remember fallen troops as heroes

U.S. and NATO officials issued statements vowing to "stay the course" in Afghanistan after the deadly weekend Chinook crash but the recent devastating death toll will likely raise more questions about how much longer foreign troops should stay in Afghanistan.

The deaths came barely two weeks after foreign troops began the first phase of a gradual process to hand security responsibility over to Afghan soldiers and police.

That process is due to end with the last foreign combat troops leaving at the end of 2014, but some U.S. lawmakers are already questioning whether that timetable is fast enough.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai issued a statement on Sunday saying "enemies of Afghanistan" ? the Taliban and other insurgents ? wanted to disrupt the transition process.

A worrying surge of military deaths is being matched by record casualties among civilians, who continue to bear the brunt of a war that appears to have become bogged down despite claims of success from both sides.

Interactive: The cost of war (on this page)

On Monday, 300 angry Afghans took to the streets in central Ghazni province carrying the bodies of two people they claimed had been killed during a raid by ISAF troops.

Civilian casualties caused by foreign troops hunting insurgents have long been a major source of friction between Kabul and its Western backers. U.N. figures show such casualties hit record levels in the first six months of 2011, although it blamed 80 percent of them on insurgents.

U.N. figures show that 1,462 Afghan civilians were killed in conflict-related incidents in the first six months of 2011, the deadliest period for civilians since the Taliban were toppled by U.S.-backed Afghan forces in late 2001.

The Associated Press, Reuters and NBC News contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44055633/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/

tax free weekend esl chelsea fc chelsea fc scrubs friendship quotes friendship quotes