NATO air raids kill 52 people, including children, in Afghanistan

At least 12 children and two women were killed in a NATO air strike in Afghan province of Helmand. In the southern province of Helmand, local authorities said at least 14 civilians, including women and children, were killed and six injured in an air raid. Afghan authorities said that NATO had killed 52 people, mostly civilians, in air strikes in various parts of the country. NATO authorities say a probe have been ordered into the killings of civilians in NATO air raids. According to Helmand government spokesman Daud Ahmdi 14 children and women were killed in Nawzad district while six civilians were injured when NATO troops called air support after their base came under attack from small arms fire. Separately, 18 civilians and 20 policemen were killed by "friendly fire" during the US-led air strikes against insurgents in Nuristan province. Nuristan was the scene of heavy battles last week between the Taliban and Afghan security forces. The police and civilians were targeted after they were mistaken for militants, Nuristan Governor Jamaluddin Badr said.