Witnesses: US helicopters attack Syrian village

The television report quoted unnamed Syrian officials and said the area is near the Syrian border town of Abu Kamal. It gave no other details.

Local residents told The Associated Press by telephone that two helicopters carrying U.S. soldiers raided a farm in the village of Hwijeh, 10 miles inside Syria's border, killing seven people and wounding five. One of the witnesses said five of the dead were from a single family.

The residents refused to allow their names to be given because they feared they would be harassed by authorities.

The U.S. military in Baghdad had no immediate comment.

The area is near the Iraqi border city of Qaim, which had been a major crossing point for fighters, weapons and money coming into Iraq to fuel the Sunni insurgency.

Iraqi insurgents seized Qaim in April 2005, forcing U.S. Marines to recapture the town the following month in heavy fighting. The area became secure only after Sunni tribes in Anbar turned against al-Qaida in late 2006 and joined forces with the Americans.