Afghanistan: At least 40 civilians were killed on Sunday night during an airstrike conducted by Afghan special forces supported by the US on Taliban hideouts in the southern Helmand province.
The on-going fighting has further rattled Afghanistan which is facing an upsurge in clashes after US-Taliban peace talks to end America's longest war collapsed earlier this month.
Anti-Taliban airstrike by Afghan special forces killed 40 civilians in Musa Qala district on Sunday. Deputy provincial councilman Abdul Majed Akhund said that the majority of the dead were women and children who were at a wedding ceremony that was taking place in Musa Qala district.
Twelve other civilians were wounded and shifted to the hospital in Lashkar Gah, he added.
There were conflicting reports on the numbers of killed and wounded from different sources as the area is under Taliban control, sources said.
There were two separate raids in different areas of Musa Qala. The first operation killed six foreign fighters while the second airstrike mistakenly hit civilians, head of the provincial council Attahullah Afghan said.
In an official statement, Afghanistan's defence ministry said that 22 foreign members of the Taliban were killed and 14 arrested including five Pakistani nationals and one Bangladeshi as a result of the operations in Musa Qala district.
Omar Zwak, the provincial governor's spokesman, confirmed that 14 insurgents including six foreigners were killed in this airstrike.
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