This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/09/world/middleeast/isis-iraq-violence.html

The article has changed 4 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
ISIS Shoots Down an Iraqi Military Helicopter, Killing 2 ISIS Shoots Down Iraqi Military Helicopter, Killing 2
(about 9 hours later)
BAGHDAD — Insurgents shot down an Iraqi military helicopter on Wednesday near the refinery town of Baiji, killing two onboard, Iraqi military officials said. BAGHDAD — Insurgents from the Islamic State militant group shot down an Iraqi military helicopter on Wednesday near the refinery town of Baiji, killing two onboard, Iraqi military officials said.
It was the second time in less than a week that militants of the extremist group the Islamic State have shot down an Iraqi military helicopter, raising the stakes for the Iraqi Air Force and the United States-led coalition, which have dominated the sky during a multipronged campaign of airstrikes on the insurgency that has lasted weeks. It was the second time in less than a week that the militants had shot down an Iraqi military helicopter, raising the stakes for the Iraqi military and the United States-led coalition fighting the group, which have dominated the sky during a campaign of airstrikes.
The American military command began deploying attack helicopters in recent days in its campaign against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, putting its pilots at greater risk from ground fire. The American military command began deploying attack helicopters in recent days in its missions against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, putting its pilots at greater risk from ground fire.
Islamic State fighters apparently used a shoulder-fired missile on Wednesday morning to bring down the helicopter, which was on a surveillance mission northeast of Baiji, a town about 120 miles north of Baghdad and the site of the country’s largest oil refinery, officials said. The Associated Press reported that the aircraft was a Bell 407, primarily used for surveillance. Islamic State fighters apparently used a shoulder-fired missile on Wednesday morning to bring down the helicopter, which was on a surveillance mission northeast of Baiji, a town about 120 miles north of Baghdad and the site of the country’s largest oil refinery, officials said. The Associated Press reported that the aircraft was a Bell 407, which are primarily used for surveillance.
The pilot and co-pilot were killed in the attack, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment on the record. By early afternoon, rescue teams had still not been able to reach the crash site and recover the bodies, officials said. The pilot and co-pilot were killed in the attack, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment on the record. By early afternoon, rescue teams had still not been able to reach the crash site to recover the bodies, officials said.
Last Friday, militants, also using a shoulder-fired missile, shot down an Iraqi military helicopter near Baiji, killing the pilot and co-pilot. That aircraft was a Russian-made Mi-35 attack helicopter. On Friday, also using a shoulder-fired missile, militants shot down another Iraqi military helicopter near Baiji, killing the pilot and co-pilot. That aircraft, a Russian-made Mi-35 attack helicopter, crashed in Islamic State-controlled territory on its return from a bombing mission, preventing the authorities from recovering the victims’ bodies, said Moyid al-Sa’adi, a cousin of the pilot, Lt. Col. Marwan Majid al-Sa’adi, 28.
“He was always flying close to the ground and we were very concerned about him flying at this altitude,” Mr. Sa’adi said in an interview on Wednesday. “But he said, ‘There are specific targets and I need to be at such an altitude to target them.’ ”
Colonel Sa’adi had promised his mother that he would resign from the military, but only after the Islamic State had been defeated. “I have to complete my mission,” he would say, according to his cousin.
Attack, bomber and fighter aircraft generally fly at high altitudes that put them beyond the range of weapons that the Islamic State is thought to possess, officials say. But helicopters, which fly slower and at much lower altitudes, are vulnerable.Attack, bomber and fighter aircraft generally fly at high altitudes that put them beyond the range of weapons that the Islamic State is thought to possess, officials say. But helicopters, which fly slower and at much lower altitudes, are vulnerable.
Beginning Sunday, the American military command has used Apache helicopters to conduct airstrikes in Anbar Province in western Iraq. The Islamic State has been entrenched there since the beginning of the year and has been in near-constant clashes with Iraqi security forces as the group seeks to gain control of strategic transportation corridors connecting the Syrian border with Baghdad, and northern Iraq with the south. On Sunday, the American military command started using Apache helicopters to conduct airstrikes in Anbar Province, in western Iraq. The Islamic State has been entrenched there since the beginning of the year and has been in near-constant clashes with Iraqi security forces as the group seeks to gain control of strategic transportation corridors connecting the Syrian border with Baghdad, and northern Iraq with the south.
The coalition launched further airstrikes in Anbar Province on Tuesday and Wednesday, destroying an Islamic State checkpoint and an armed vehicle east of Falluja as well as three buildings used by the militants, two pieces of antiaircraft artillery equipment and a checkpoint, all located in or near Ramadi, the American military command said in a statement. A separate airstrike near Sinjar Mountain in northern Iraq destroyed an armed vehicle, the military said, adding that American, British and Dutch aircraft participated in the operations.
Also on Wednesday, troops from the Iraqi Army and the Iraqi police drove militants from three towns in northeastern Anbar, severing a key transit route for the insurgency between the west of the country and the north, an Iraqi military official in Anbar said.
The towns — Dhabutia, Banat al-Hassan and Tarbulia — had for months been under the control of the militant group, allowing fighters to transport weapons and supplies between key strongholds around the country, like Falluja; territory near Taji, north of Baghdad; and villages near Samarra and Tikrit to the north.
“The liberation of these areas means, in a military sense, a fracturing of the insurgency’s spine,” said the official, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the record.