US air strike kills civilians, draws ire from Afghan president

The presidential palace said US aerial bombardment killed 11 civilians, including two children and two women, and injured 12 others.

KABUL // A US air strike in eastern Afghanistan killed 11 civilians, including children and women.

The incident sparked condemnation from President Hamid Karzai who has often criticised the conduct of Nato forces preparing to leave 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 campaign that will end by December.

“As a result of a US aerial bombardment... 11 civilians, including two children and two women, were killed, and 12 more injured,” said the presidential palace.

“President Hamid Karzai condemns in the strongest terms the bombardment by American forces.”

It said Tuesday’s strike 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 forces, which often stress 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.

“The foreign forces called for air support and as a result of bombardment a number of militants and civilians were killed. We are investigating the incident,” he said.

One of the survivors, Saleh Mohammad, said there were two waves of bombings.

“Four of our villagers were on their way back home from work when airplanes bombed them,” he said.

“When people went to the area to collect their bodies or take the wounded people to hospital, we were bombed again. Dozens of people, including women and children, were killed or wounded.”While misguided US air strikes have often triggered Mr Karzai’s fury and occasional street protests, the UN mission in Afghanistan says Nato is now responsible for only one per cent of all civilian deaths in the conflict.About 40,000 Nato combat troops are deployed in Afghanistan, with 12,000 expected to remain into 2015 on a training and support mission as local soldiers and police take on the Taliban.

* Agence France-Presse