Afghanistan's president said Saturday that the United States failed to consult Afghan forces when calling in an airstrike that killed 18 civilians, and warned that in the future his government will consider such actions as violating the country's pact with Washington.
In the east, meanwhile, a Taliban suicide bomber disguised as a woman wearing a burqa killed four French soldiers when he blew himself up in a market. Both Karzai's condemnation of the US operation and the French deaths as that country rushes to pull out its combat forces were reminders that the international exit from Afghanistan is going to be far from orderly. As more agreements are signed promising Afghan sovereignty and more Nato troops are assigned the role of trainers or advisers, the international mission in the county is becoming increasingly muddled.
Presidential spokesman Aimal Faizi said that President Hamid Karzai met with investigators earlier in the day and concluded that US troops had called in Wednesday's strike without co-ordinating with Afghan units. The incident occurred during a night time raid on militants taking cover in a village. These raids are a major irritant in Afghan President Hamid Karzai's relationship with the international military coalition. Karzai says the raids put civilians at risk of injury or death. Military officials say such operations are key to capturing and killing Taliban leaders.
The US and Afghanistan signed an agreement in April that put the Afghan government in charge of most such "special operations" - a move designed to resolve some of the longstanding tensions. But when villagers in Logar province displayed the bodies of 18 civilians killed in a US airstrike on Wednesday, Karzai quickly called on the international coalition to explain itself.
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