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Kuros
Joined: 27 Apr 2004
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 Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2011 9:50 am Post subject: Taliban kills 31 US special forces & 7 Afghan commandos |
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US special forces Afghan helicopter 'downed' by Taliban
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A US helicopter crash in eastern Afghanistan has killed 31 US special forces and seven Afghan commandos, President Hamid Karzai's office says.
The incident marks the biggest single loss of life for US forces in Afghanistan since operations began in 2001.
The Chinook helicopter went down overnight in Wardak province, the statement from President Karzai's office said.
It was returning from an operation against the Taliban in which eight insurgents are believed to have been killed. |
Apparently many of the US soldiers were Navy SEALs.
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Kuros
Joined: 27 Apr 2004
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| Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 10:43 am Post subject: |
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US says Taliban who shot at US helicopter dead
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An air strike has killed the Taliban who shot at a Chinook that crashed leaving 38 US and Afghan personnel dead, Nato-led forces have said.
General John Allen, US forces commander in Afghanistan, said those responsible had been targeted on Monday by an F-16.
Nato said the raid had killed a Taliban leader and the insurgent who fired at the military helicopter on Saturday. |
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Leon
Joined: 31 May 2010
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| Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 4:58 pm Post subject: |
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I'm surprised that more of this sort of thing hasn't happened. Considering that shooting down planes was a major key to defeating the soviets in Afghanistan. I was also a little surprised to learn that this was the single largest loss of life for the allies at one time. I wonder where all the stinger missles have gone, I know some are accounted for, but not all.
This new age of war where one side suffers excedingly disproprotianate loss of life is scary stuff. No wonder we've been there so long, there is no huge death toll to truly make our involvement there cost enough for the public and lawmakers demand an end. That being said taking out an elite seal unit is a major, at least in terms of morale, victory for the Taliban. It's a tragedy, but it pales in comparison to the thousands of Afghan civilians. |
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wintermute
Joined: 01 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 8:52 pm Post subject: |
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| Kuros wrote: |
US says Taliban who shot at US helicopter dead
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An air strike has killed the Taliban who shot at a Chinook that crashed leaving 38 US and Afghan personnel dead, Nato-led forces have said.
General John Allen, US forces commander in Afghanistan, said those responsible had been targeted on Monday by an F-16.
Nato said the raid had killed a Taliban leader and the insurgent who fired at the military helicopter on Saturday. |
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That story seems a little bit too neat and convenient. The actual guy who fired the RPG at the chopper? RPGs are common, insurgents can easily disguise themselves as civilians, it was night time, and they had the element of surprise. He'd be long gone.
Taking into account the improbability of the claim, and its high "morale" value, I'd be willing to bet that that specific claim is more PR than truth. |
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sirius black
Joined: 04 Jun 2010
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| Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 8:59 pm Post subject: |
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What does 'kinetic' mean? I can only assume it was some sort of hand to hand or face to face killing.
Historically, it is well known that Afghanistan was a place you don't fight a war. From Alexander the Great to the British to the Soviets, its been a place you avoid. After 911 I understand the need.
Taking resources to Iraq instead of Afghanistan hurt the cause greatly. Its one of the worse things (in a list of bad decisions) that Bush did. There is no telling how much more progress and how much sooner we could have been out of there if we had concentrated all our efforts there. Not to mention the number of lives lost in Iraq.
By the taliban's own accounts, drones and special forces are the things that have worked against them. |
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Fox
Joined: 04 Mar 2009
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| Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 9:18 pm Post subject: |
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| wintermute wrote: |
| Kuros wrote: |
US says Taliban who shot at US helicopter dead
| Quote: |
An air strike has killed the Taliban who shot at a Chinook that crashed leaving 38 US and Afghan personnel dead, Nato-led forces have said.
General John Allen, US forces commander in Afghanistan, said those responsible had been targeted on Monday by an F-16.
Nato said the raid had killed a Taliban leader and the insurgent who fired at the military helicopter on Saturday. |
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That story seems a little bit too neat and convenient. The actual guy who fired the RPG at the chopper? RPGs are common, insurgents can easily disguise themselves as civilians, it was night time, and they had the element of surprise. He'd be long gone.
Taking into account the improbability of the claim, and its high "morale" value, I'd be willing to bet that that specific claim is more PR than truth. |
This is how I felt when I read that bit too. |
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wintermute
Joined: 01 Oct 2007
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| Posted: Wed Aug 10, 2011 9:19 pm Post subject: |
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| sirius black wrote: |
| What does 'kinetic' mean? I can only assume it was some sort of hand to hand or face to face killing. |
I'd guess that he means depleted uranium. Anti-armor munitions either use explosive energy from a directional charge, or metal rods which rely on kinetic energy to punch through the target. DU is very dense, so is very effective as a kinetic projectile, but also leaves radioactive contamination, hence the need to euphemise. |
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