Senate Condemns US Airstrikes on Afghan Police in Urozgan

The Upper House of Parliament has strongly condemned US airstrikes that killed eight Afghan police in Urozgan province; calling it a ‘barbaric’ action.

Afghan senators have urged the security institutions to fully investigate this issue.

“There should be a comprehensive investigation that this incident should not repeated again. But unfortunately we witnessed these incidents are always repeated such as; Logar and Paktia provinces,” said senator Muhammad Alam Izadyar.

Meanwhile, deputy of the senate house called on security agencies to seriously investigate this incident.

“We want the security institutions to seriously investigate on this issue to punish the main perpetrators of this incident,” said Hasibullah Kalim Zai, first deputy speaker of the Senate.

The US forces claimed to launched airstrikes in the province to help Afghan security forces repel an offensive by the Taliban who recently came close to capturing the provincial capital, Tarin Kot, according to the Guardian.

The errant airstrike occurred on Sunday around noon when a police post off the highway leading to Kandahar came under attack. Officials say the US apparently tried to defend the police forces and accidentally struck the checkpoint.

“It was a mistake from the American side. There was bad communication between them and the police,” said Abdul Karim Khadimzai, head of Uruzgan’s provincial council. He said seven police were killed and one gravely injured.

According to Obaidullah Barakzai, who represents Uruzgan in parliament, the policemen who died were part of a reserve unit tasked with securing the highway. They were apparently not wearing uniforms at the time of the attack, he said.

“The police battalion said they wore uniforms, but I heard from the foreigners that they were wearing civilian clothes and carrying guns. That is why they were attacked,” he said.

Uruzgan, long one of the most contested provinces in the country’s south, is said to be the birthplace of the late Taliban founder Mullah Omar. It was also where former president Hamid Karzai launched a guerrilla campaign to oust the Taliban in 2001. As such, Uruzgan has symbolic value to both sides of the conflict.