This is horrific news....
From the USA link
Breaking News -- Afghan president: 31 U.S. troops killed in helicopter crash
Date: Saturday, August 06, 2011 5:46 AM
TAfghan President Hamid Karzai says that 31 U.S. special forces and 7 Afghan soldiers were killed in a helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan. It is the highest number of casualties recorded in a single incident in Afghanistan. The Taliban have claimed responsibility.----------------------------------------
I can't write any more...terrible news....
WaPo story here
NYT lede paragraph...
KABUL, Afghanistan — Insurgents shot down a NATO Chinook helicopter during an overnight operation in eastern Afghanistan, killing at least 37 people on board, a coalition military official said on Saturday. It was believed to be the deadliest helicopter crash in the nearly decade-long war, punctuating a surge of violence across the country even as American and NATO forces begin a modest drawdown of troops.
Twice as bad as previous worse one day loss...
Prior to Saturday, the biggest single-day loss of life for the American military in Afghanistan came on June 28, 2005 during Operation Red Wing in Kunar Province, when a Chinook helicopter carrying Special Operations troops was shot down in eastern Kunar Province as it tried to provide reinforcements to forces trapped in heavy fighting. Sixteen Special Operations troops, most of them Navy Seals, were killed in the crash. Three more Seals were killed in fighting on the ground.
From the NYT link.
Will this slow the exit out?
That process[draw-down] is due to end with all foreign combat troops leaving Afghanistan by the end of 2014, but some U.S. lawmakers have already questioned whether that handover is fast enough.
MSNBC