Asia
5 yıl önce

Air strike kills 16 civilians - Afghan official

Sixteen civilians from the same extended family killed by an air strike in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province, said an official.

An Afghan woman sits next to a wounded child after receiving treatment at Indira Gandhi Children's Hospital after a powerful truck bomb attack in Kabul on January 15, 2019.
AFP

An Afghan woman sits next to a wounded child after receiving treatment at Indira Gandhi Children's Hospital after a powerful truck bomb attack in Kabul on January 15, 2019.

An Afghan official says an air strike on a home has killed 16 civilians from the same extended family in the southern Helmand province.

Attaullah Afghan, head of the provincial council, said the air strike was launched Wednesday in the Sangin district during heavy fighting between Afghan forces and the Taliban. He says most of those killed were women and children.

Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the provincial governor, says an investigation has been launched.

It was not immediately clear if the air strike was launched by Afghan forces or NATO, which often provides air support to Afghan ground troops.

NATO says it is looking into the reports.

Afghan forces have struggled to combat Taliban that now effectively controls nearly half the country.

SOURCE: AP
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