KABUL (Reuters) - The NATO-led international force in Afghanistan rejected on Friday reports from Afghan officials that it killed more than 50 civilians in air strikes the previous day in the west of the country.
At least four men were killed in the strikes, a spokesmanfor the regional police command had said on Thursday. Witnessessaid 17 people were also wounded.
But other reports, by Shindand District Chief Mullah LalMohammad and a tribal elder, Haji Zalmai, said that more than50 civilians had been killed in the strikes in the villages ofFarmakan and Bakhtabad in the western province of Herat.
"ISAF has thoroughly investigated and rejects claims thatISAF forces killed more than 50 civilians in the Shindandarea," the International Security Assistance Force said in astatement.
"Our extensive investigation reveals that the closestairstrikes carried out were 13 km to the South East of thesevillages. ISAF therefore rejects these claims as baseless."
In a statement released on Thursday the U.S. military hadsaid the raid was against "high priority Taliban targets" andthat two "Taliban leaders" and a "significant number ofinsurgents" were also killed. It said there was no evidence ofany civilian casualties.
However, the U.S. military confirmed on Thursday that ithad killed eight civilians in an air strike on Tuesday in theneighbouring province of Farah.
The U.S. military says it is also investigating reports byAfghan officials that around 60 civilians were killed in twoseparate air strikes by U.S.-led coalition forces this month ineastern Afghanistan.
The issue of civilian casualties is a highly sensitive onefor the Western-backed government and undermines Afghan supportfor the presence of foreign forces who are fighting theTaliban-led insurgents in Afghanistan.
There has been a sharp rise in violence in Afghanistan thisyear, the bloodiest since U.S.-led and Afghan forces overthrewthe hardline Taliban in the wake of the September 11, 2001attacks.
(Reporting from Kandahar by Ismail Sameem; Writing byJonathon Burch; Editing by Alex Richardson)
