NATO air strike kills six Afghan troops in 'friendly fire' incident

A NATO air strike intended to target Taliban militants in south-central Afghanistan Tuesday fired on a military post, killing six Afghan soldiers. Western forces have been criticised in the past for collateral caused by 'friendly fire'.

By News Wires (text)

AFP - Six Afghan soldiers were killed when their post came under fire from NATO aircraft in central Afghanistan, police said Wednesday, describing the bombing a "friendly fire".

The air strike was originally aimed at Taliban militants in Ghazni, a restive province in south-central Afghanistan, said Nawruz Ali Mohamoodzada, a provincial police official.

The incident took place late Tuesday, he said.

"It mistakenly hit an army post in which six soldiers were killed. An investigation has been launched," he told AFP.

There was no immediate comment from US-led NATO military in Afghanistan.

About 140,000 international troops are fighting along with Afghan security forces to quell a resurgent Taliban-led insurgency now in its ninth year.

The foreign forces are also tasked with training their Afghan counterparts.

Western forces have killed scores of Afghan civilians and friendly soldiers, mostly in air strikes that were aimed at insurgents.

Afghan soldiers have also been responsible for the deaths of NATO soldiers in the past.

Separately, four Afghan police officers were killed by a bomb in Logar, another restive region just south of Kabul, the interior ministry said.

The officers were on patrol in a troubled part of the province when the bomb hit their vehicle Tuesday. The ministry blamed the attack on the Taliban.