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Deadly U.S. helicopter crash caused by missile-CNN
22 Jan 2007 21:53:00 GMT
Source: Reuters

(Adds claim of responsibility)

WASHINGTON, Jan 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. military helicopter that crashed outside Baghdad, killing all 12 on board, was shot down by a shoulder-fired missile, CNN reported on Monday.

The Black Hawk was most likely brought down on Saturday by hostile fire, according to unidentified U.S. officials cited by CNN. The crash was still under investigation but debris recovered on the ground indicate a missile was involved, CNN said.

"We have not released anything from here on the cause of the crash ... The cause of the crash is still under investigation," said Lt. Col. Josslyn Aberle in Baghdad.

The Islamic State of Iraq, an Iraqi militant group linked to al Qaeda, said in a statement on a Web site used by Islamist militants that its anti-aircraft units shot down the helicopter.

The authenticity of the statement could not be verified.

Twenty-five U.S. troops were killed on Saturday in one of the deadliest days for the American military in Iraq, according to the latest U.S. tally.
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Children stand in the compound of a relative's residence, at which they are now staying after their families left their homes in Baghdad for Arbil, about 350 km (220 miles) north of Baghdad, January 19, 2007. Tens of thousands of people have fled Baghdad, the epicentre of violence in Iraq. The United Nations, launching an appeal for aid for Iraqis who have fled their homes or left the country, said this month about one in eight Iraqis is now displaced. Many, including non-Kurds, have taken refuge in Kurdistan -- a largely autonomous region in the northern mountains that has been a haven from attacks plaguing other areas since the U.S. invasion of 2003. Picture taken January 19, 2007. To match feature MIGRATION-IRAQ/ARBIL.