Nine Americans killed during U.S. attack on al-Qaida fighters

? Nine Americans have died in a U.S.-led assault in Afghanistan, including at least seven killed when two helicopters took enemy fire in the largest offensive of the five-month war against terrorists, Pentagon officials said Monday.

Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said enemy forces had sustained “much larger numbers of killed and wounded, and there will be many more.” He said the assault would continue during the days ahead.

Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said several hundred al-Qaida fighters were in the mountains of eastern Afghanistan, well dug-in, well-fortified and they “have lots of weapons.”

“We knew that al-Qaida would have two choices, to run or stay and fight,” Myers said. “It seems they have chosen to stay and fight to the last, and we hope to accommodate them.”

In one incident, a Chinook helicopter was shot at and crashed. Six died in the crash or an ensuing fire fight on the ground, said a senior defense official of condition of anonymity.

In the second incident, the official said, one American was killed when a helicopter was fired on, made a hard landing and then managed to take off again.

An eighth U.S. soldier was killed Saturday. Rumsfeld said a total of nine American troops had died, but it was not clear who the ninth casualty was.

An unknown number of American troops also were wounded in the incidents, which occurred in an operation started Friday against suspected al-Qaida and Taliban believed regrouping near Gardez in eastern Afghanistan.

Rumsfeld said the casualties, including wounded, had all been evacuated from the region.

The downed helicopter, normally used to ferry special forces troops and supplies, was downed on its way to the battle near Gardez.

The helicopter was the first American aircraft taken down by enemy fire in the war, and the six killed represented the largest death toll from one incident caused by enemy fire. There were accidental crashes of other craft since the anti-terror campaign opened Oct. 7, including one in which seven Marines were killed.

The two helicopter incidents came as the largest coalition force assembled so far in the campaign combining troops from America, Afghanistan and at least six other nations engaged an estimated several hundred al-Qaida and Taliban in intense fire fights backed by airstrikes.