U.S. soldiers missing in Afghan mountains after chopper shot down; fighting kills 25

KABUL, Afghanistan — A small team of U.S. soldiers was missing Friday in the same mountains where a special forces helicopter was downed three days ago by "a lucky shot," and a military spokesman said American forces were using "every available asset" to find them.

The MH-47 Chinook helicopter — which was carrying 16 people, all of whom died in the crash — went into the eastern mountains Tuesday to extract the soldiers now missing. The ground team has been unaccounted for since the chopper was downed, U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Jerry O'Hara said.

In central Afghanistan, a provincial governor said 25 people have died in three days of fighting, including nine tribal elders kidnapped and killed by Taliban rebels.

That was yet another troubling sign for a nation that has seen three years of progress toward peace collapse in recent months.

Also Friday, purported Taliban spokesman Mullah Latif Hakimi claimed rebels captured a U.S. soldier near the town of Asadabad, close to the Pakistani border.

"One high-ranking American has been captured in fighting in the same area as the helicopter went down," he told The Associated Press. "I won't give you any more details now."

Reacting to the claim, O'Hara said, "We have no proof or evidence indicating anything other than the soldiers are missing."

Hakimi, who also claimed that insurgents shot down the helicopter, often calls news organizations to take responsibility for attacks, and the information frequently proves exaggerated or untrue. His exact tie to the Taliban leadership is unclear.

O'Hara said U.S. forces were using "every available asset" to search for the missing troops.

"Until we find our guys, they are still listed as unaccounted for and everything we got in that area is oriented on finding the missing men," he said.

The loss of the 16 troops on the chopper was the deadliest single blow to American forces who ousted the Taliban in 2001 and are now fighting an escalating insurgency. The helicopter was ferrying reinforcements for a battle with suspected al-Qaida fighters in a ravine in eastern Kunar province.

Rescuers — struggling against stormy weather, insurgents and the rugged terrain — reached the crash site Thursday, about 36 hours after the chopper went down in high mountains near Asadabad.

All the bodies were recovered and troops are trying to identify the remains, the military said.