Afghan helicopter crash investigated

KABUL, Afghanistan - Foreign forces in Afghanistan on Sunday were investigating whether insurgents shot down a helicopter in what was the deadliest single incident for US troops in a decade of war.

Thirty US soldiers - some from the Navy's special forces SEAL Team 6 that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden - seven Afghans and an interpreter died in Friday night's crash, which came just two weeks after foreign troops began a security handover to Afghan security forces.

The Taliban quickly claimed responsibility for bringing down the helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade. Although it has in the past exaggerated incidents involving foreign troops, a US official in Washington said the helicopter was believed to have been shot down.