16 Dead in Rocket Attack on US Chopper

New Attacks Intensify Pressure on Bush (washingtonpost.com)

"But the latest round of attacks in Iraq, and especially yesterday's deaths -- which amounted to the biggest single day of losses since last spring's conventional war -- may prove more significant in strategic terms.

'It is damaging not only because of the tragic human toll, but also because it looks like a dramatic escalation in lethality and therefore begs obvious questions: Are all helicopters at risk now? Are we losing the initiative? Who is winning?' said Peter D. Feaver, a former National Security Council staff member who teaches political science at Duke University.

'If the attacks get interpreted as evidence that the Baathist holdouts are winning, then attacks like this can be as lethal for public support as they are for the soldiers involved,' he said. "