7 US Soldiers Killed in Iraq Copter Crash

Seven US soldiers were killed in southern Iraq today when their helicopter crashed, the AP reports. "At this time we are uncertain of the cause, but hostile fire has been ruled out," a military spokesman said. The crash occurred shortly after midnight in a desert under British military control, as a four-helicopter convoy was heading from Kuwait to a military base north of Baghdad.

A British quick reaction force and road convoy were dispatched to help American officials at the site, and an investigation is under way. The helicopter accident is the deadliest for US troops since August 2007, when a Black Hawk crashed in northern Iraq, killing all 14 soldiers aboard. The military has not yet released the names of those killed today.
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