Afghan civilians killed by Nato airstrike

A Nato airstrike on two vehicles believed to be carrying Taliban fighters in southern Afghanistan accidentally killed and wounded an unspecified number of civilians, coalition forces said today.

The international alliance said it was investigating the strike, which occurred yesterday in the Naw Zad district of Helmand province. The helicopter airstrike followed intelligence reports that suggested a Taliban leader and his associates were in the vehicles, Nato said.

In the aftermath of the strike, coalition troops found bodies of civilians in the wreckage, Nato said. It did not released the number of the dead and wounded.