This contains more information and analysis.
From the London Observer
(Sunday supplement of the Guaradian Unlimited)
Dated Sunday October 26
US helicopter shot down in Iraq
By Peter Beaumont, foreign affairs editor
US army Black Hawk helicopter was shot down yesterday near Tikrit, the home of former president Saddam Hussein, using a readily available grenade launcher worth less than £40.
The incident comes at a time when attacks against American troops in Iraq are on the rise, averaging more than two dozen every day, and underscores the vulnerability of the American army, despite its technological sophistication and overwhelming power.
According to the US military, five soldiers were injured when the helicopter gunship crashed into a field and burst into flames. It was the second helicopter to be shot down since May . . . .
One of the architects of the war in Iraq, US Deputy Secretary of Defence Paul Wolfowitz, had left Tikrit only hours earlier. Wolfowitz is making a three-day visit to the country as part of a public relations campaign by the White House to highlight improvements in Iraq that US authorities feel have been ignored by the international media.
Iraqis appear to disagree. A poll released this week showed that 67 per cent of Iraqis view the American-led coalition as 'occupying powers', more than 20 per cent higher than a survey conducted shortly after the fall of the former regime. According to the poll, conducted by Iraq's Centre for Research and Strategic Studies, the number of Iraqis who view the coalition as a 'liberating' force has dropped from 43 to 15 per cent, and very few feel safe in the presence of the police or foreign armies controlling the country.
Once again, Americans who want to know what they need to know to make informed decisions in a democracy should turn to the British press.
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