KABUL, Afghanistan -- Five U.S. soldiers were killed and seveninjured when their helicopter crashed Sunday near the Americanmilitary headquarters north of the Afghan capital, U.S. CentralCommand said.
The soldiers were involved in an ongoing U.S. militaryoperation, dubbed Mountain Resolve, taking place in the East of thecountry, the military said.
''A U.S.military helicopter crashed today near Bagram,Afghanistan,'' said a statement sent by e-mail from CentralCommand, in Tampa, Fla. ''Early reports indicate seven servicemembers were injured, and at least five service members werekilled.''
It was not clear what caused the crash, and the military said itwas investigating.
Bagram Air Base, just north of the capital, is home to most ofthe 11,600 coalition forces in Afghanistan. An additional 5,000international peacekeepers patrol Kabul.
Mountain Resolve has been going on since Nov. 7 in easternNuristan and Kunar provinces, but so far no major skirmishes withsuspected Taliban and al-Qaida holdouts have taken place.
Also Sunday, a coalition vehicle struck a land mine whilepatrolling an area of Afghanistan near the Pakistani border,seriously wounding two American soldiers, including one who lostone of his legs.
Several reporters were traveling with the 10th Mountain Divisionforces in eastern Afghanistan, but none were seriously hurt, theU.S. military said in a statement issued at Bagram air base. Itgave no further information about the journalists.
The explosion occurred at about 1 p.m. in Shkin, Paktikaprovince, about 135 miles south of Kabul, the Afghan capital. Acoalition base also is located there.
The wounded soldiers received initial medical treatment at thescene, then were evacuated by air to a medical facility at nearbySalerno base in the city of Khost, the statement said. The men wereStaff Sgt. Roy Mitchell, of Batesville, Ind., and Sgt. 1st ClassMichael Eichner, of Stoington, Penn., officials at Fort Drum in NewYork state said.
Mitchell, 32, suffered burns to his face, neck and back, and hadhis left leg amputated. Eichner, 31, was wounded by shrapnel in hisback and had a broken hand, the officials said. The soldiers wereassigned to the 1st Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment.
Eastern and southern Afghanistan have become a hotbed of attacksby pro-Taliban and pro-al-Qaida militants targeting coalitionforces, U.N. workers and relief agencies.
On Friday, the violence hit Kabul when a rocket landed 30 yardsfrom the Intercontinental Hotel, shattering glass but causing noinjuries. The hotel, a favorite among foreign visitors, is alsonear the site of an upcoming loya jirga, or grand council, set toratify a new constitution in December.
A week ago, a French woman who worked with the U.N. HighCommissioner of Refugees organization, Bettina Goislard, 29, wasgunned down by suspected Taliban militants in the southern city ofGhazni. She became the first international aid worker to be killedin Afghanistan since the fall of the Taliban regime two yearsago.
Some 35 Americans have died from hostile fire in Afghanistansince the October 2001 start of the Afghan war, according to theU.S. military.
An American soldier taking part in the Mountain Resolveoperation was killed Nov. 14 when his vehicle struck a land minenear Asadabad, the capital of Kunar province.
Last month, two CIA agents were killed in an ambush near anotherU.S. base in the eastern Afghan border town of Shkin.
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