Another trigger-happy pilot in Afghanistan?

U.S. Bomb Kills 3 British Soldiers in Afghanistan
By DAVID ROHDE
New York Times

LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan, Aug. 24 — Three British soldiers died in southern Afghanistan on Thursday in an apparent friendly fire incident involving a bomb dropped by an American plane, British officials announced today.

The deaths, which brought a statement of condolence from the United States embassy in London, come after British and local Afghan officials have already criticized the American military for what they consider excessive use of air strikes in Afghanistan.

At around 6:30 p.m. Thursday, the British soldiers called for air support after coming under fire near the town of Kajaki in the southern province of Helmand. The soldiers were on a patrol to disrupt Taliban insurgents, the British military said.

American planes in the area dropped a single bomb that landed near the British patrol.

“Close air support was called in from two U.S. F-15 aircraft to repel the enemy,” the British Ministry of Defense said in a statement. “One bomb was dropped, and it is believed the explosion killed the three soldiers.” Two other soldiers were injured in the incident.

Last month, a British officer in Helmand complained that American Special Forces soldiers in the area used airstrikes too often there, killing civilians and alienating the population. The officer requested that American forces leave the area.

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