David Edwards
Raw Story
Monday, February 5, 2007

An Iraqi insurgent group, said to be affiliated with al Qaeda in Iraq, posted a video message on the Internet which purportedly shows an American helicopter being shot down, one of four US chopper losses the last few weeks.

The video shows a helicopter plunging "with a black trail of smoke," the AP reports, as a message in Arabic reads that it depicts the "downing of a US Army Apache helicopter" that was hit near Taji, in central Iraq.

The authenticity of this "grainy" video hasn't yet been verified.

According to a web report on Ireland On-Line, the "web page carried the name of the so-called Islamic State in Iraq, an insurgent group formed late last year by the Mujahedeen Shura Council, an umbrella organisation of insurgents in Iraq."

"The page carried links to download the alleged video of the US helicopter being hit and falling," the article continues. "After accessing the links, the video was not visible, and the page showed only a black screen with audible voices on tape." Video clip from AP report: