NATO airstrike killed 13 Afghan civilians

A US air strike in eastern Afghanistan killed 13 civilians, local officials said Wednesday, sparking strong condemnation from President Hamid Karzai who has often criticized the conduct of the NATO forces now leaving the country.
Civilian casualties have been a source of recurring tension between the U.S. and the Afghan government.
The governor of Kunar province, Shuja ul-Mulk Jalala, said villagers brought the bodies of the 13, including two children, from their insurgent-dominated district of Narang to the provincial capital to complain that they were all civilians.
“The foreign forces called for air support and as a result of bombardment a number of militants and civilians were killed. We are investigating the incident,” he said.
The area is barely under government control, the governor said, so it was difficult to confirm exactly what happened.
The candidates, Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, last week pledged to NATO leaders that they would form a government of national unity and sign legal agreements allowing some NATO forces to stay on and train and advise the Afghan army after combat operations end in December.