Saturday, August 06, 2011 – According to local authorities in southern Afghanistan, at least seven Afghan civilians were killed in a Nato air strike in southern Helmand province on Friday afternoon.
The officials further added, the incident took place at about 03:00 pm local time in Nad-e-Ali district of Helmand province when a convoy of foreign forces was targeted by small arms.
According to Shadi Khan, district police chief, at least seven civilians were killed after Nato air strike targeted the area in response to militants fires.
But local residents in Nad-e-Ali residents said that nine Afghan civilians were killed in the attack.
Meanwhile, NATO-led International Security Assistance Forces haveconfirmed an air strike was carried out after a coalition patrol came under attack.
According to a statement issued by ISAF forces, shortly after the engagement coalition forces received reports that civilians were being held captive by the insurgents and may have been present during the air strike.
The statement further added, a team of coalition members met with local leaders and ISAF was assessing the incident.
In the meantime, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has said in its recent report that the first six months of 2011 have been the deadliest period for civilians since the Taliban were toppled by the Us-backed Afghan forces in late 2001.
According to the report issued by the United Nations Assistance Mission, at least 1,462 civilians were killed in conflict-related incidents, up to 15 percent on the first half of 2010. It blamed insurgents for 80 percent of those deaths.
