U.S. Says Most Dead In Afghan Strikes Were Taliban

Civilian deaths from U.S. and NATO air strikes have become a growing source of anger among Afghans.

The U.S. military said on Wednesday 20-35 civilians had been among 80-95 people, mostly Taliban, killed in air strikes in western Afghanistan early this month, disputing the Afghan government's toll of 140 civilians killed.

In a new incident that shows the difficulty Western forces have faced in limiting civilian deaths in the fight against a growing Taliban insurgency, NATO-led forces said they may have killed eight villagers in air strikes in the south on Tuesday.

Civilian deaths from U.S. and NATO air strikes have become a growing source of anger among Afghans towards the nearly 80,000 foreign troops in the country fighting Taliban militants.

Afghan authorities say 140 civilians were killed by U.S. air strikes in western Farah province during a May 3 battle in which U.S. Marines and Afghan security forces were attacked.

A government list of the victims records 93 children, 25 adult women and 22 adult men among the dead.

But the U.S. military said in a statement that a preliminary investigation had concluded 80-95 people had been killed and 60-65 of them were "Taliban extremists".

U.S. military spokesman Colonel Greg Julian said video from cameras on board a B1 bomber showed two groups, each of about 30 people, fleeing from a battle scene and rushing into houses, both of which the plane then bombed.

Although the people moving into the houses could not be identified from the footage, Julian said "other information which I wish I could release" proved they were Taliban fighters.

"These guys are running from the battle area," Julian said of the people visible in the footage. "The ground commander is talking to the aircraft commander and confirming that these guys are insurgents fleeing from the battle area and regrouping."

The Afghan government says the houses that were destroyed were filled with women and children hiding from the fighting.

"NOT MUCH TO BURY"

The U.S. military says too few graves were found at the site to back up the Afghan government's death toll. But Julian also said the massive bombs dropped on the houses would make it difficult to examine any remains. "We blew those buildings apart. There's not going to be much to bury," he said.

The civilian casualties have been a major source of friction between Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who is seeking re-election in August, and his Western backers.

More than seven years after U.S.-led forces ousted the Taliban, the large number of civilian casualties have undermined support for foreign troops trying to stabilise Afghanistan, even as the insurgency gains strength.

In the separate new incident in southern Helmand province, NATO said it sent warplanes on Tuesday to Nawa in Helmand after insurgents attacked an alliance patrol.

"Tragically, it is believed that eight civilians were killed as a result of the air strike," it said in a statement, adding NATO was investigating the incident with Afghan authorities.

It did not say whether there were any other casualties.

The Afghan government's toll of 140 civilian deaths in Farah would make it the single deadliest incident for civilians since the campaign against the Taliban began in late 2001.

Karzai, accompanied by the new U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan, met grieving survivors of the air strikes in Farah on Tuesday and again called for an end to aerial attacks.

Ill-equipped and outnumbered, the Taliban have launched guerrilla attacks against around 70,000 foreign troops. Given the terrain and size of Afghanistan, the foreign troops often rely on air power while hunting the militants.

U.S. commanders have rushed thousands of reinforcements to Afghanistan in what Washington considers a make-or-break year for a war it now views as its main security priority.