KABUL — Afghanistan’s government welcomed Saturday a U.S. report accepting blame for a bombing run that killed dozens of villagers. The report said it confirmed that international military forces were not doing enough to safeguard civilians.
The investigation into a May battle against Taliban militants that killed at least 26 civilians was released Friday in Washington. The report prepared by U.S. Central Command recommends tighter controls — including how air strikes are conducted — to limit the civilian deaths that risk turning Afghans against the U.S war effort.
Humayun Hamidzada, the spokesman for President Hamid Karzai, said he believed that the U.S. estimate of civilians killed in the May 4-5 clash in western Farah province was too low but generally welcomed the U.S. report’s conclusions.
"The key thing is that the report itself said there are problems with the way operations are conducted, and that’s what we’ve been saying,” he said.
The report comes as President Barack Obama funnels thousands of new troops into Afghanistan to combat a strengthened Taliban insurgency that is claiming growing numbers of American lives, too.
Hamidzada urged that better procedures be put in place quickly, both to protect the Afghan people and the wider military effort to turn back the Taliban insurgency. He did not make specific recommendations for what changes international military forces should make.
by the associated press
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