In the deadliest attack on U.S. troops since the start of the invasion, Iraqi resistance fighters downed a helicopter Sunday killing 16 U.S soldiers and injuring 20. The soldiers were being taken out of Iraq on a short-term leave.

The shoulder-fired missile attack occurred near Falluja, west of Baghdad. It came a day after the sixth-month anniversary of President Bush’s initial May 1st announcement that major combat operations had ended in Iraq. A total of 379 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq, two-thirds of the deaths have occurred after May 1.

Roadside bombs killed three other Americans on Sunday: two civilians working as private contractors were killed in Fallujah and a soldier was killed in Baghdad.

27 U.S. soldiers have died in the past week, the highest total since the fall of Baghdad.

The Washington Post reported that Iraqis celebrated the downing of the helicopter. One truck driver told the Post, “Why are the Americans here? They’re just showing off their muscles. Force creates force.”

Another Iraqi added, “an honest man who does not like to be occupied by foreigners.”