Chief of the Helman Provincial Council, Attaullah Afghan, said 17 policemen were killed and 14 wounded in Thursday’s air strike, although central authorities did not confirm the number of casualties or the causes of the accident
US troops in Afghanistan have acknowledged that they mistakenly bombed Afghan security forces on Thursday when they were trying to give them air support during a clash with the Taliban in southern Helmand province.
The bombing took place at the request of Afghan troops battling insurgents in the provincial capital of Lashkargah, Colonel Dave Butler, a spokesman for the US forces said in a statement to Efe.
According to the same source, an Afghan coordination unit confirmed at the time that the area was free of allied forces.
Unfortunately, it was not and that resulted in a tragic accident. Both members of the Afghan security forces and Taliban fighters were killed in the bombings , ” said Butler, who did not specify the number of casualties.
The spokesman assured that “bad communication” is being investigated so that it does not repeat itself in the future.
