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Karzai condemns civilian attacks

May 31, 2011

NATO and US forces get a warning after an airstrike that killed 12 children and two women in the southern province of Helmand, according to Afghan officials.

https://p.dw.com/p/RQvp
Civilian casualties by foreign forces have been a delicate issue in Afghanistan
Civilian casualties by foreign forces have been a delicate issue in AfghanistanImage: AP

Afghan President Hamid Karzai warned NATO and US forces Tuesday to stop bombing civilian homes, or they would be regarded occupying forces. "If after the announcement of the Afghan government that there must be no bombing on Afghan homes...they still continue to bomb our homes, then their presence will change from a force that fights terrorism to a force against the Afghan people and an occupying force," Karzai said.

"In that case history is witness to how Afghans deal with invaders."

The comments came three days after a NATO airstrike killed 12 children and two women in the southern province of Helmand, according to the government.

The German military says its top commander in Afghanistan was wounded on May 28 when a suicide bomber attacked a provincial governor's compound in the north of the country
A top German commander was wounded on May 28 in a suicide bombing in AfghanistanImage: AP

NATO admitted to killing nine civilians in that operation, and the alliance's top commander in the southern region apologized. The airstrike was initiated after a US Marine was killed in a Taliban attack in the area.

Karzai did not elaborate on measures his government would take other than saying that he would discuss them in a meeting with NATO officials Sunday.

"The Afghan people can no longer tolerate these attacks," he said.

Sarah Berning / dpa