The U.S. military says five American soldiers have been killed when a helicopter went down in southern Iraq, reported dpa.
A U.S. statement says the CH-47 Chinook helicopter made a "hard landing" shortly after midnight Thursday about 60 miles west of Basrra.
The Chinook was a part of an aerial convoy flying from Kuwait to the U.S. military base at Balad just north of Iraq.
The military says the cause of the mishap is under investigation.