The US military said Nov. 5 that it will investigate a report that an air-strike hit a wedding party in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, killing dozens of civilians and prompting new protests from President Hamid Karzai. "We cannot win the fight against terrorism with air-strikes," Karzai told reporters in Kabul, hours after Barack Obama won the US presidential race. "This is my first demand of the new president of the United States [2]—to put an end to civilian casualties." (LAT [3], Nov. 6)
Ahmed Wali Karzai, chairman of Kandahar's provincial council, said he and his brother, President Hamid Karzai, were told by residents during a teleconference after the air-strikes that between 300 and 350 Taliban fighters invaded Wech Baghtu village in Shah Wali Kowt district just before the wedding ceremony. Inside the village, insurgents stationed themselves on rooftops, including those of homes that were holding wedding events. (Toronto Globe & Mail [4], Nov. 5)
See our last posts on Afghanistan [5] and civilian casualties [6].
