Thirty-one US soldiers die after NATO copter crashes in Afghanistan

KABUL, (Reuters) – A NATO helicopter crashed during a  battle with the Taliban in  Afghanistan, killing 31 U.S.  soldiers and 7 Afghans, the Afghan president said today, a  devastating toll and easily the worst single incident for  foreign troops in 10 years of war.
A brief statement from the presidential palace said the  troop-carrying Chinook helicopter had crashed in Syedabad in  central Maidan Wardak province, just to the west of the capital,  Kabul, and identified the Americans as special forces troops.
The Taliban quickly claimed to have shot down the helicopter  during a firefight, although the Islamist militant group often  exaggerates incidents involving foreign troops or Afghan  government targets. They also said eight insurgents had been  killed in torrid fighting.
“They wanted to attack our muhahideen who were in a house,  but our mujahideen resisted and destroyed a helicopter with a  RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) rocket,” Taliban spokesman  Zabihullah Mujahid said by telephone from an undisclosed  location.
“Eight mujahideen were martyred and 38 Americans were killed  and today they (U.S. soldiers) carried away parts of their plane  and shattered pieces of their bodies.”
The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)  earlier confirmed that a helicopter had crashed but gave no  information about the possible cause or casualties.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai “shared his deep sorrow and  sadness” with U.S. counterpart Barack Obama and the families of  the U.S. and Afghan victims, the palace statement said.
Afghanistan’s Defence Ministry spokesman, Zaher Azimy, also  said the helicopter had crashed. He said the Afghans killed had  also been from a commando unit.
“The incident is under investigation right now as this  helicopter belongs to international forces,” Azimy told Reuters  television. “Obviously they will provide details of the crash  and the reason.”
The high casualties come only two weeks after the start of a  gradual process of handing security responsibility from foreign  forces to Afghan troops and police, and at a time of growing  unease about the increasingly unpopular and costly war.