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| Afghanistan |
| Afghanistan: NATO disputes civilian casualties |
| 2009-08-06 |
| [ADN Kronos] NATO on Wednesday rejected claims by Afghan villagers that an overnight air strike by alliance helicopter gunships killed four civilians in southern Afghanistan, saying those killed were insurgents. Residents in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar's Arghandab district said a NATO airstrike killed four civilians, including three children, and wounded two others. But a statement by the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) issued in Kabul said that an alliance helicopter identified four insurgents carrying "weapons and plastic jugs" who were possibly placing roadside bombs in Arghandab. "ISAF engaged the insurgents with rockets and small arms fire from a helicopter, killing the insurgents," the statement said. ISAF denied bombs were dropped and claimed a large secondary explosion, possibly caused by explosives from the insurgents, occurred. Meanwhile, six civilians including two tribal elders were killed in a roadside bomb explosion on Wednesday in the eastern province of Nangarhar region, a government spokesman said. No group took responsibility for Wednesday's attack, but the Taliban make heavy use of roadside bombs against NATO-led troops. Civilian casualties during the international military operations have caused mounting resentment among Afghans and have become an inflammatory issue ahead of the 20 August presidential election. President Hamid Karzai, who is seeking re-election on August 20, has repeatedly urged foreign forces in the country to avoid civilian deaths. At a campaign rally last month, he pleged to forge a "new agreement" with ISAF if he is re-elected. Wednesday's incidents came as NATO's new secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, visited Afghanistan on Wednesday on just his third working day in his new job, the alliance said. Rasmussen, formerly Denmark's prime minister, was due to meet Karzai, the head of NATO's military mission in the country, General Stanley A McChrystal, and UN special envoy Kai Eide, NATO announced in a statement. Rasmussen, who began work on Monday as NATO's chief, has already listed Afghanistan as his top priority for his four-year term of office. He was also due to meet other candidates for the presidential election scheduled, and with some of NATO's 64,500 ground troops. Last week, the United Nations said civilian casualties in Afghanistan increased by nearly 26 percent during the first half of 2009 compared with the same period last year. |
| Posted by:Fred |