LOC11:54
08:54 GMT
KABUL, March 8 (KUNA) -- Two Afghan policemen were killed following a
"friendly-fire" by the US-led coalition troops in a northern part of
Afghanistan.
Press office of the coalition troops on Sunday said the US and Afghan
special operation forces were involved in an operation in Tagab district of
Kapisa Province when they located some individuals who opened fire at them
thinking they were militants, as it was night time.
The troops returned fire in self defence, killing two individuals.
Later on, it was revealed that those killed in the "friendly-fire" were
Afghan policemen. Before the exchange of fire, the coalition troops used
different methods to prevent a shootout, including engagement of the
individual with the help of a translator in Pashto language, but there was no
response.
The press office said the incident was under review.
"We sincerely regret the loss of life of our friendly forces and we are
continually working with our Afghan partners to prevent situations like this
in future," said US Forces Afghanistan Spokesman Col. Greg Julian.
Separately, the Afghan police assisted by the coalition troops killed five
militants during a patrol in an area of Tirin Kot, capital of the country's
southern Uruzgan Province.
The combined forces patrol was engaged by a group of "violent extremists"
with small-arms and rocket-propelled grenade fire, who attempted to ambush the
police patrol.
The Afghan police returned "precisely-controlled small arms fire", keeping
in view the presence of civilians in the area, and killed the militants.
Following the engagement, the Afghan police secured the area and discovered
one improvised-explosive device on a well-traveled roadside in the vicinity of
the attack.
A day earlier, over one hundred Afghan civilians staged a protest
demonstration in Khost Province accusing the Us-led troops of killing four
civilians during a ground operation.
Before the protest demonstration, the coalition troops had claimed that
four militants were killed during an overnight raid in Khost.
However, the villagers, who placed the four bodies on the Khost-Gardez
road, said all those killed by the troops were civilians. They chanted slogans
of "death to America" and "death to Afghan government".
In its recently-released report, the United Nations expressed concern over
the plight of civilians in the Afghan conflict and urged upon both the Taliban
and the local and foreign armed forces to observe restraints while conducting
operations in civilian areas.(end)
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KUNA 081154 Mar 09NNNN