Elite Navy SEALs among 31 U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan

August 6 was a tragic day for all citizens of the Unites States when a CH-47 Chinook helicopter was shot down in eastern Afghanistan, killing 31 U.S. special operation troops, most of them from the elite Navy SEALs unit that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, along with seven Afghan commandos.

The incident took place in the eastern province of Wardak, an area rife with insurgent activity. There has been a swell of recent attacks in the country's southern and eastern provinces.

The crash of the Chinook helicopter, killing 38 people is the worst single incident in 10 years of war in Afghanistan. The helicopter was carrying elite troops sent to help
Army Rangers that were engaged in a firefight when it was likely hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired by the Taliban.

The remains of the 30 U.S. troops killed over the weekend will be brought to Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Tuesday, August 9, 2011.

Pentagon officials say there will be no public media coverage of the Military's "dignified transfer" ceremony because the remains are still being identified. Families are allowed to attend the arrival.


Currently, there are 150,000 ISAF forces in Afghanistan, including nearly 100,000 from the United States -- the largest NATO presence in the region since the U.S.-led war began in 2001.

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