Helicopter crashes in north Iraq

Two US pilots died on Friday when their helicopter crashed in northern Iraq, the US military has said.

The Kiowa helicopter came down at about 2030 (1730 GMT) north-west of Qayara, about 50 kilometres (30 miles) south of Mosul, according to a statement.

The cause of the crash - the fourth suffered by US helicopters this month - was unclear, it said.

It added that an accompanying helicopter did not mention any hostile activity before the incident.

The helicopter was attached to the 101st Airborne division.

The other recent helicopter crashes have taken place in the relatively restless area near Falluja, west of Baghdad.

On 2 January a Kiowa helicopter was shot down near Falluja, killing one pilot.

Six days later, nine US soldiers were killed when a Black Hawk helicopter was shot down, also near Falluja.

A US Apache helicopter came down on 13 January west of Baghdad after apparently coming under ground fire. Both crew members escaped injury.