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‘Likely fatalities’ after US military helicopter crashes in Iraq

Posted at 4:44 PM, Mar 15, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-15 19:17:40-04

By Barbara Starr and Ryan Browne, CNN

A US military HH-60, a Black Hawk variant helicopter, has crashed in western Iraq near the border with Syria, according to multiple US defense officials.

One US defense official said that there were “likely fatalities” involved and that rescue teams were on the scene in under an hour.

The officials cautioned that these are early reports and that the Pave Hawk was carrying seven personnel, but was not on a combat mission.

The officials said the early reports do not indicate hostile fire, but they emphasized they need to determine what happened.

“A US military aircraft has crashed in western Iraq with US service members aboard,” the US-led coalition fighting ISIS in Syria and Iraq told CNN. “Rescue teams are responding to the scene of the downed aircraft at this time. Further details will be released when available. An investigation will be initiated to determine the cause of the incident.”