US airstrikes early Thursday killed at least 30 Afghan civilians, including women and children, in the volatile northern province of Kunduz, officials said, after a Taliban assault left two American soldiers dead.
The airstrike triggered emotionally-charged protests in the provincial capital, with the victims' relatives parading mutilated bodies of dead children piled into open trucks through the streets of Kunduz city.
The carnage underscores worsening insecurity after the Taliban last month overran the city for the second time in a year, as Nato-backed Afghan forces struggle to rein in the insurgents.
Afghan forces backed by US troops were conducting an operation against the Taliban on the outskirts of the city when they came under insurgent fire, prompting calls for air support.
"In the bombardment 30 Afghan civilians were martyred and 25 others were wounded," provincial spokesman Mahmood Danish told AFP.
Police spokesman Mahmoodullah Akbari gave the same toll to AFP, adding that the dead included infants aged as young as three months and other children.
"They were asleep when their house came under attack," Akbari said.
In a brief statement on Twitter, Nato conceded that US forces were behind the airstrike.
"Airstrikes were conducted in Kunduz to defend friendly forces under fire. All civilian casualty claims will be investigated," it said.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.