(MENAFN- The Peninsula) A US air strike in eastern Afghanistan killed 14 civilians, local officials said yesterday, sparking condemnation from President Hamid Karzai who has often criticised the conduct of Nato forces now leaving the country.
Civilian casualties caused by the US-led military coalition during the war against Taliban insurgents have been one of the most contentious issues in the 13-year combat campaign that will end by December.
"As a result of a US aerial bombardment...14 civilians, including two children and two women, were killed, and 12 more injured," said a statement from the presidential palace.
"President Hamid Karzai condemns in the strongest terms the bombardment by American forces."
It added the strike on Tuesday occurred in the Narang district of Kunar, one of the country's most volatile provinces. Kunar borders Pakistan, where many Taliban seek shelter.
Nato's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), which often stresses that avoiding civilian casualties is a major priority, said it was 'currently looking into the circumstances' of the operation.
It added that a separate 'precision strike' elsewhere in Kunar on Tuesday resulted in the death of one armed militant and no civilian casualties.
Abdul Hadi Sayedkhil, the police chief of Kunar said that a joint Afghan-Nato patrol was ambushed in Narang by militants.
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