Women and children were among 17 civilians killed in southern Afghanistan, an official said on Friday, but it was not clear if they were victims of a foreign air strike or Taliban rockets. The issue of civilian casualties is an emotive one in Afghanistan and feeds the perception of many Afghans that foreign troops do not take enough care to avoid killing ordinary citizens and fuels resentment at the Nato presence in the country.
"Around 17 civilians were killed when a house collapsed on them, but we don't know whether the foreign forces' air strikes or rocket attack caused it," said Dawood Ahmadi, a spokesman for the governor of Helmand province. The chief of the tribal council of Naad Ali district, where the deaths occurred on Thursday, said air strikes killed 18 members of five families sheltering in the house from fighting.
"Loy Bagh village where the house was bombed is relatively calm compared with other villages in the district," said Abdul Ahad Helmandiwal said. "We are still taking out dead or wounded people from the rubble." The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said it was investigating an incident involving an air strike in Naad Ali district, but said it was unable to confirm any civilian casualties.