Chopper crash makes 2010 Afghanistan's deadliest year
A US official said there was no sign that the chopper came under hostile fire from insurgents before going down in the Daychopan district of Zabul province.
In Kabul, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said the cause of the crash was under investigation.
It said another NATO soldier, an Afghan soldier and a US civilian were also injured.
The Taliban, who have been waging an increasingly deadly insurgency against foreign troops since the 2001 US-led invasion, immediately claimed responsibility.
Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi alleged the insurgents shot the helicopter down and killed "more than 10 foreign soldiers." The militia routinely exaggerate its claims.
The incident brings to 529 the number of foreign troops killed this year, surpassing the previous record of 521 deaths in 2009.
- AFP
www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/09/22/3018268.htm
Sept. 22, 2010