What Happened In Afghanistan?

Military Recounts Chopper Crash Chain Of Events; 1 Still Missing

(AP)  The bodies of the 16 — ages 21 to 40 — were recovered and flown to Bagram, the main U.S. base in Afghanistan, before being transported to Dover, Del.

Then on Saturday, a breakthrough came in the desperate search for the four commandos. A friendly tribal elder living in the nearby mountains told authorities he was caring for one of them in his house, Kunar Gov. Asadullah Wafa said. It wasn't clear how the commando got there, he said.

U.S. forces rushed to the site and found the commando, wounded, but in a stable condition. He was flown to Bagram for treatment — and a debriefing, giving military commanders the first crucial clues about what happened to the ill-fated team.

But the good news didn't last.

On Saturday, a U.S. airstrike in the region killed as many as 17 civilians, prompting a strong rebuke by the Afghan government. The next day, U.S. troops in the area spotted the bodies of two of the commandos in a deep ravine. It took another 24 hours to recover their remains and fly them to Bagram.

It was the largest loss of Navy SEALs in a single incident since the force of about 2,400 was formed in 1962.

U.S. commanders refused to give up hope for the fourth missing service member. About 300 troops and numerous aircraft were still in the area Wednesday, searching for him and hunting "a large number" of militants, Yonts said.

"We're, of course, doing everything we can to find the last of the four SEALs. And it's a real priority, and something the president asked to get briefed on this morning," National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley said aboard Air Force One.

The U.S. military has remained tightlipped on what the commandos were doing in the area, or what happened to the men following their urgent calls for help and the helicopter crash.