U.S. coalition airstrikes in Afghanistan killed up to 95 civilians on Saturday. The airstrikes occurred in the village of Azizabad in Herat Province. A spokesman for the police chief there said that the dead included 40 children, 19 women, and 26 men. He added that there were no Taliban in the area.
This conflicts with the U.S. account of the airstrike. The U.S. military claimed that coalition forces had come under attack there and responded by calling in an airstrike that killed 25 militants, including a Taliban leader named Mullah Sadiq. Responding to charges that civilians had been killed in the strikes, the military issued a statement saying that it was “aware of allegations” that the strike “may have resulted in civilian casualties”, saying that “All allegations of civilian casualties are taken very seriously. Coalition forces make every effort to prevent the injury or loss of innocent lives. An investigation has been directed.”
A local tribal leader said, “These people they killed were enemies of the Taliban.”
