Seven US soldiers were killed when a Chinook transport helicopter crashed in southern Iraq on Thursday, the US military said. A military spokesman said it appeared mechanical failure was the cause of the crash of the CH-47 Chinook helicopter just after midnight.
He said the total number of personnel on board the helicopter was seven. The original number killed had been put at five, with two soldiers missing. The remains of those two soldiers were later found, the spokesman said. The helicopter was part of an aerial convoy flying from neighbouring Kuwait to the Balad US military air base in Iraq. The crash took place about 100 km (60 miles) west of the southern Iraqi city of Basra.