WASHINGTON -- The Associated Press has learned that more than 20 Navy SEALs from the unit that killed Osama bin Laden were among those lost in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan.

The operators from SEAL Team Six were flown by a crew of the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. That's according to one current and one former U.S. official. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because families are still being notified of the loss of their loved ones.

One source says the team was thought to include 22 SEALs, three Air Force air controllers, seven Afghan Army troops, a dog and his handler, and a civilian interpreter, plus the helicopter crew.

The sources thought this was the largest single loss of life ever for SEAL Team Six, known as the Naval Special Warfare Development Group.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/08/06/afghan-president-31-americans-killed-in-helicopter-crash/#ixzz1UGjrqNRm

RIP to some true American heros!

This....is very sad. They were true heroes. I just heard about this crash and it makes me sick. It is a shame.......

Its kind of fishy. I wouldnt be surprised if this unit has been sent under for their own protection and this story fabricated by officials.

But , if its true, it is a very sad anomaly. (What are the odds the same seal crew would crash TWO different helicopters, counting the one that crashed at the Bin Laden camp)

Didn't crash, got taken down by a rocket. If they were going to do that they would include ALL the Season invoved in the raid, not just most.

Not to mention now their names will be revealed to the press and their families will be in danger.

"They wrote in the old days that it is sweet and fitting to die for one's country. But in modern war, there is nothing sweet nor fitting in your dying. You will die like a dog for no good reason."-Ernest Hemingway [1899-1961], American writer and Nobel Laureate

This whole thing makes me wanna see a fishing license.

None of those killed in the crash is believed to have been part of the SEALs mission that killed bin Laden, but they were from the same unit as the bin Laden team.

http://news.yahoo.com/31-americans-7-afghans-killed-helicopter-crash-145151275.html

ahh, the ambiguity of the english language

this is a bit more believable, from the same unit but not the same guys,,,,military does get shot down and its a bit more likely that some who happened to be from the same unit were amongst the latest casualties

Sorry to hear of it. These guys were the razor's edge though and
they knew their missions well and the risks.



To the Seals!

The Seals that died were from the same group but they were not the group from the bin laden raid, or so they are saying.

"None of the 22 SEAL personnel killed in the crash were part of the team that killed bin Laden in a May raid in Pakistan, but they belonged to the same unit. Their deployment in the raid in which the helicopter crashed would suggest that the target was a high-ranking insurgent figure." from yahoo news



Sheeesh i should read all the way through before posting :p

to the seals!

There had to be some high value targets there or they wouldn't have sent Seals from that unit in.

When people hear about killings in Afghanistan, they should realize that Afghanistan doesn't make guns or explosives. The Taliban gets supplied by nations which do make weapons but are not officially part of the war. Most of munitions used by the Taliban come from Pakistan and Iran. It would not be possible to supply the large number of arms used without government support from these nations.

We need to do something and soon about both those countries.

metalwing

Do you have any real evidence or intelligence or credible information or any details about where "most of these weapons" or munitions "used by the Taliban" come from? Are you in the arms business now?

These kinds of rumors are very subtle and on the verge of gossip/propaganda without some reliable evidence.

Lpdon

Really? We? Would that be you and the mouse in your pocket?

Or are you talking about sending the young men and women of this country into another war with another third world country? Don't we have enough wars going on right now?

It is truly amazing what you don't know. The simplest facts seem to escape your attention.

Up until a few years ago, almost all of the weapons used in Afganistan were either US or Soviet made and were leftovers from the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

"During the Soviet Occupation during the 1980s, the US Government along with many other nations such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia pledged to supply weapons to the mujaheddin who were being slaughtered by the Soviet Military. We provided these Afghan resistance fighters with Assault Rifles, Rockets, Anti-Tank mines that they could use against Soviet Armor, as well as Stinger Missiles that they would eventually use to engage Soviet helicopters. The addition of the Stinger Missile was a major turning point during the war because it eliminated all air threats, turning the war in Afghanistan into a ground battle which gave the Afghans the upper-hand.

When the Soviets finally ended operations in Afghanistan, they left behind a lot of their own equipment to make for a quick pull out which added to the overwhelmingly large amount of weapons already residing in that country. The Soviets also left behind millions of anti-personnel landmines during the pullout because they were pissed off that their operation was unsuccessful. FYI, Afghanistan is one of the most saturated countries in the world in regards to landmines.

When I was there in 2007, our Forward Operating Base had a program in place that offered to pay cash to Afghans who were willing to turn over weapons. There was a standardized spreadsheet used by the US Military throughout Afghanistan that contained almost every type of weapon with an estimated value next to it. Occasionally we would have locals drive up to the gate with trunk loads of weapons for turn-in and they would walk away with cash in their hands or an IOU that would be paid to them at a later time when we had the money on-hand.

So to answer your question, virtually all of the weapons and RPGs used by the Taliban is leftover stuff from the 80s (and yes, the stuff still works).
Source(s):
US Army - Active Duty, 8 years and still serving
Iraq and Afghanistan Veteran."

Nowadays, the RPGs are part Soviet, part Chinese, and part Iranian.
The mines are known to be Iranian, but since large stockpiles already existed in Pakistan, you can bet some are from there too.

Some of the parts from IUDs acquired by US soldiers in both Iraq and Afghanistan have the factory label of the Iranians.

From Channel 4 News ...

"The exclusive images and documents show, for the first time, the full extent of Iranian support for the Taliban in the shape of tonnes of weapons of the type being used against UK troops in Helmand province.

Despite the millions of dollars being spent by the international community to ensure cross-border security between Iran and Afghanistan, Channel 4 News has been shown vast hauls of weaponry which Afghan security services have told us are just a fraction of hardware intercepted from Iran on their way to the Taliban.

They claim it shows the true extent of direct support from the Iranian government for the insurgency.

The Afghan border with Iran is almost 1000km long and is incredibly difficult to police. The border town of Eslam Ghalah, in the Western Afghanistan province of Herat, is a key checkpoint for goods and human traffic entering and leaving Afghanistan.

Yet less than 10km from this border town is one of the country's most notorious smuggling routes. And Channel 4 News has learnt that it is also a major pipeline for Iranian support to the Taliban.
Persian serial numbers on weaponry used by the Taliban.

The range of weaponry shown to Channel 4 News includes mortars, plastic explosive, hand grenades, phone cards and Taliban propaganda booklets. There are also rows upon rows of mines - each with a Persian serial number. Proof, say the Afghan authorities, that they came from Iran's state run weapons factories."

The Taliban buys and makes weapons in Pakistan at will.

http://www.motherboard.tv/2011/5/3/vbs-tv-gun-markets-of-pakistan-where-the-taliban-goes-shopping-slideshow

Well metalwing I am glad that you are amazed at what I don't know. Why would you think it is amazing that I don't know about the weapons trade? I have not made it my business to know. I have never claimed to have that information.

The people who finance the wars are ultimately responsible for the production of weapons. I do know that every conflict and every war does have to have weapons. A country that does not have any weapons and a military force is not even recognized as a country. It is at the mercy of anyone who decided to move in and take over.

So is it your policy that these countries should not have any weapons or a military? If it is, then what you want is to destroy these countries.

After all countries succumb to the west and become part of the world economy who will be in charge of the world then?

People love to make fun of the NWO conspiracy but that is exactly what it is. A world bank, a world police force, and a world leader.

A one world government. That is what you support. That is what people believe will bring world peace.

I'm not saying its the worst thing that could happen, I just think you should know that it is happening.

JB

What you posted is

"Do you have any real evidence or intelligence or credible information or any details about where "most of these weapons" or munitions "used by the Taliban" come from? Are you in the arms business now?tongue

These kinds of rumors are very subtle and on the verge of gossip/propaganda without some reliable evidence."

It is amazing that you call the truth rumor and propaganda because you don't know the difference. You must be so insulated from the real world that you cast this falsehoods with the belief that others are just as detached.

It is also amazing how fast your stories change and how you put words into the mouths of others in an attempt of paint them with your political paintbrush. You admit you know nothing then claim to know so much.