‘Friendly fire’ by US aircraft kills 10 Afghanistan soldiers

The checkpoint hit had Afghan flag waving, official says

PUL-E ALAM, AFGHANISTAN // A US airstrike killed at least 10 Afghan soldiers yesterday at an army checkpoint in a province south of Kabul.

It was the latest “friendly fire” incident involving foreign coalition forces.

The bombing in Baraki Barak district of Logar province came after a similar Nato airstrike in the area in December killed five civilians and wounded a further six.

“At 6am [5.30am UAE] today, two US helicopters attacked a checkpoint in Baraki Barak,” said Mohammed Rahim Amin, the district governor.

“The checkpoint caught fire ... and 10 Afghan army soldiers were killed,” he said, revising down an earlier toll of 14.

An American military official acknowledged “an incident involving US forces in Logar province this morning”.

Logar’s deputy police chief, Mohammed Wara, confirmed the strike and said 10 Afghan soldiers were killed and four others wounded.

Civilian and military deaths in coalition airstrikes have been one of the most emotive and high- profile issues of the 13year Afghan war, often provoking fury from the government. Mr Amin said the targeted outpost was “not a suspicious area”.

“The Afghan flag was waving at the checkpoint in Baraki Barak when the Americans launched their attack,” he said. Nato ended its combat mission in Afghanistan in December, leaving local forces to battle the Taliban alone, but a residual force remains for training and counter-terrorism operations.

Yesterday’s incident came as Taliban insurgents stepped up attacks on government and foreign targets during their summer offensive.

While “friendly fire” incidents involving foreign coalition forces are a deeply contentious issue in Afghanistan, UN statistics show that the Taliban are responsible for most deaths.

Civilians often fall victim to such attacks, with almost 1,000 Afghan civilians killed during the first four months of the year, according to the UN mission in Afghanistan.

Foreign forces are themselves known to sometimes fall victim to “friendly fire” incidents.

A Nato airstrike killed five US troops and an Afghan soldier in an accident during clashes with insurgents.

In January, Afghan soldiers accidentally fired mortars at a wedding party that killed 17 women and children in the Sangin district of the southern province of Helmand.