American Soldiers Investigating Causes of Chinook Helicopter Crash

American soldiers are searching for the causes of the crash of a Chinook helicopter - November 3, 2003. President Bush states that the increasing number of American soldiers killed in Iraq will not deter the U.S. commitment to help build a free and peaceful society in Iraq. He expressed this view on Monday while American soldiers were searching for the wreckage of a military transport helicopter that crashed on Sunday, looking for a document that would clarify the cause of the crash. In this incident, 16 American soldiers lost their lives and 20 were injured. At the crash site, near Fallujah, bulldozers and other heavy equipment are at work. Most of the injured have been transferred for treatment to a U.S. military hospital in Germany. Witnesses say missiles were fired from the ground at the helicopter. No one has claimed responsibility for this attack so far. Donald Rumsfeld, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, describes the loss of the Chinook helicopter as a tragic and unavoidable cost of what he predicts will be a hard and long war. Meanwhile, investigations into the attack on the helicopter continue. Violence continues in other parts of Iraq. The U.S. military reports that several mortars were fired in central Baghdad on Monday night, but it is still unclear whether there were any casualties. Earlier, at least 4 Iraqi civilians were killed in separate incidents. In Baghdad, according to a spokesperson for the organization set up by the U.S. to manage Iraqi affairs, the head of a local council was shot and killed by unidentified attackers on Sunday night. This is the latest attack on Iraqis who are considered collaborators with the U.S.-led coalition. Additionally, on Monday in the Baghoubah area north of Baghdad, a bomb exploded near a bus, killing one Iraqi citizen and injuring at least 7 others. The bomb, which was planted by the roadside, exploded moments after a convoy of vehicles carrying members of the Iraqi Civil Defense Force passed by.