Iraq Watch: June 27, 2005

BAGHDAD, Iraq - A U.S. helicopter crashed near Mishahda, about 20 miles north of Baghdad, on Monday killing both pilots aboard the Apache attack helicopter. The AP reports that the aircraft was downed as the result of a rocket attack.

The U.S. military also announced Monday that a Task Force Baghdad soldier was killed in a small-arms fire attack in central Baghdad today. According to the release the attack occured at about 10:15 a.m. when the soldier was inspecting a vehicle fire.

Elsewhere, a car bomb exploded in eastern Baghdad killing at least four people and wounding at least 16 more. The blast occured in the New Baghdad area between a movie cinema and a Sunni mosque.

Also in the capital, a roadside bomb killed two civilians when it exploded next to an Iraqi police patrol in the Azamiyah district of northern Baghdad.

CNN reports that late Sunday three Iraqis were killed when gunmen in al-Jadida attacked a barbershop there. Al-Jadida is a religiously mixed area located in southeastern Baghdad.