Iraq crash kills 12 Americans

What happened

A U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter went down in northern Iraq, killing all 12 Americans believed to be aboard. Five U.S. Marines also died in weekend attacks, the miltary said.

U.S. military officials said the UH-60 Black Hawk crashed just before midnight Saturday.

The impact

The latest deaths followed an especially bloody week in which about 200 Iraqis and a dozen U.S. troops were killed.

Other developments

Iraqi politicians claimed headway in forming a stable coalition government following the Dec. 15 elections, whose final results may be released this week.

Coverage, Page A3

The toll of war

As of Monday, at least 2,201 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. At least 1,740 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military’s numbers. The figures include five military civilians.

Since May 1, 2003, when President Bush declared that major combat operations in Iraq had ended, 2,062 U.S. military members have died, according to AP’s count.