Obama Pays Tribute To 31 Killed Troops

(NewsCore) - WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama Saturday hailed the bravery of the 31 US troops killed when a helicopter went down in Afghanistan in the deadliest single incident since the war began in the days after the 9/11 attacks.

ABC News reported that 25 of the 31 Americans were Navy Seals and that a dog was also on board the chopper.

"My thoughts and prayers go out to the families and loved ones of the Americans who were lost. Their deaths are a reminder of the extraordinary sacrifices made by the men and women of our military and their families, including all who have served in Afghanistan," Obama said in a statement.

An Afghan army commander said the helicopter was shot down late Friday by Taliban insurgents, but US officials merely confirmed the crash occurred during "enemy activity," The Wall Street Journal reported.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the crash and a Taliban spokesman said eight Taliban fighters also died in the battle. Seven Afghan Special Forces soldiers died with their American counterparts on the helicopter.

The helicopter, a Chinook, went down in an insurgent stronghold in the central Wardak province where a US-Afghanistan joint operation was targeting Taliban fighters in a night raid, according to The Journal.

The Journal reported that two Afghan government officials said the chopper was shot down by a lone militant using a rocket-propelled grenade.

US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said the crash will not deter the US from completing its goals in Afghanistan.

"We will stay the course to complete that mission, for which they and all who have served and lost their lives in Afghanistan have made the ultimate sacrifice," Panetta said in a statement. "They and their families are in my thoughts, in my prayers and in my heart."

There are currently approximately 100,000 US troops in Afghanistan who are joined by 40,000 soldiers from other countries as part of the NATO-led campaign to defeat the Taliban insurgency.

President Obama has announced plans for a gradual drawdown of US troops in Afghanistan with all foreign troops expected to be out of the country by 2014.

Read more: Wall Street Journal

Source: http://www.myfoxboston.com/dpps/news/obama-hails-bravery-of-troops-killed-in-helicopter-crash-dpgonc-km-20110806_14460694

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