U.S. Strike in Afghanistan Kills Civilians...Again

Associated Press

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Bombing runs called in by U.S. forces Tuesday killed dozens of civilians taking shelter from fighting between Taliban militants and Afghan and international troops, Afghan officials said.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai ordered a probe Wednesday into the killings, and the U.S. military sent a brigadier general to Farah to head a U.S. investigation, said Col. Greg Julian, the top U.S. spokesman in Afghanistan. Afghan military and police officials were also part of the investigative team.

Mr. Karzai, who called civilian casualties "unacceptable," will raise the issue with President Barack Obama when the two meet later Wednesday, a statement from his office said.

A provincial councilman said Tuesday that he saw about 30 bodies, many of them women and children, after villages bought them to a provincial capital. Overall death toll estimates varied widely. Villagers estimated from 70 to well over 100 civilians may have died, according to local and regional officials. But no government official could confirm such a toll.

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