- Title: NATO pledges investigation on Afghan air strike casualties
- Date: 5th November 2016
- Summary: KABUL, AFGHANISTAN (NOVEMBER 5, 2016) (REUTERS) JOINT NEWS CONFERENCE BY U.S. AND AFGHAN SECURITY OFFICIALS JOURNALISTS SEATED AT CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPOKESMAN FOR THE U.S AND NATO MILITARY FORCES, BRIGADIER GENERAL, CHARLES CLEVELAND, SAYING: "This will continue to be investigated. With the Afghans and the Resolute Support and United States we will work to get all of the facts related to this event." JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) SPOKESMAN FOR THE U.S AND NATO MILITARY FORCES, BRIGADIER GENERAL, CHARLES CLEVELAND, SAYING: "Every indication that we have right now is that the Taliban were firing on these friendly forces and every part of this was to defend those friendly forces and what we know is that we have had Afghans who have been martyred, we have had Afghans who were wounded, Afghan soldiers, and we have had American soldiers who were killed and American soldiers who were wounded. And so every aspect of this at this point is clear that this was defence in an effort to defend these troops who were down there trying to protect the people of Kunduz." JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Pashto) AFGHAN DEFENCE MINISTRY SPOKESMAN, DAWLAT WAZIRI, SAYING: "They were not ordinary people who had gathered and were holding a meeting. They were leading fighting in Kunduz. They were the commanders of their military commission." CAMERAMAN END OF NEWS CONFERENCE
- Embargoed: 20th November 2016 14:29
- Keywords: Afghanistan investigation civilian casualties air strike
- Location: KABUL, AFGHANISTAN
- City: KABUL, AFGHANISTAN
- Country: Afghanistan
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Insurgencies
- Reuters ID: LVA00157631HJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Spokesman for NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan, Brigadier General Charles Cleveland, promised on Saturday (November 5) an investigation into civilian casualties caused by an air strike in support of Afghan special forces and their U.S. advisors near the northern city of Kunduz this week.
More than 30 civilians, half of them children, were killed on Thursday (November 3) after a strike on the village of Buz Kandahari, just outside Kunduz, that was called in when a special forces raid encountered heavy fire from Taliban militants.
"Every indication that we have right now is that the Taliban were firing on these friendly forces and every part of this was to defend those friendly forces and what we know is that we have had Afghans who have been martyred, we have had Afghans who were wounded, Afghan soldiers, and we have had American soldiers who were killed and American soldiers who were wounded. And so every aspect of this at this point is clear that this was defence in an effort to defend these troops who were down there trying to protect the people of Kunduz," Brigadier General Charles Cleveland told journalists in Kabul at a joint news conference with Afghan defence ministry official.
The intensity of the fighting, in which three members of the Afghan special forces and two U.S. advisors were also killed, underlined how precarious the situation around Kunduz remains, a month after the insurgents threatened to overrun the city.
Afghan officials said 33 civilians, including 17 children, appeared to have been killed.
Defence Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri said the Taliban militants targeted in the raid were senior figures in the movement who had been targeted in their own houses. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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