Ten Afghan civilians killed in NATO operation

KABUL - Ten civilians were killed and several others were wounded when a rocket hit their home in southern town of Marjah, where thousands of Afghan and NATO forces have conducted a major anti-Taliban operation, presidential palace said Sunday.

“Based on information from Helmand’s Marjah district during the anti-terrorist operation a rocket hit a house in the district,” the palace said in a statement.

“As a result ten members of the family were martyred and several others were wounded.”

It was not clear who fired the rocket.

President Hamid Karzai instructed the relevant authorities in the province to launch an investigation, the statement said.

A total of 15,000 Afghan, US and British forces launched the most ambitious offensive yet in central part of Helmand. Two NATO soldiers and 27 insurgents have been killed since the operation began Saturday morning.

The operation is the largest since the ouster of Taliban regime by a US-led invasion in late 2001.

As the operation was underway, Karzai had called on Afghan and NATO troops Saturday “to exercise absolute caution to avoid harming civilians”.

The problem of civilian deaths caused during NATO forces operations and the resulting public anger has long been a serious issue between the West and the Kabul government.