A U.S. airstrike on an Afghan National Army outpost in eastern Logar province Monday killed eight soldiers and wounded five others, police said.
The airstrike took place around 7:30 a.m. local time, police Chief Mohammad Daud Ahmadi said.
U.S. Army Gen. John Campbell, commander of United States Forces-Afghanistan, issued a statement saying he regrets that lives were lost and sends his condolences to those affected by the tragedy. The statement referred to a lower death toll, seven, than that provided by Afghan police.
“We have initiated an investigation of this incident,” said Brig. Gen. Wilson Shoffner, deputy chief of staff for communications. “Alongside our Afghan partners, we will complete a joint investigation in a transparent, timely and thorough manner and will release further details regarding this incident as they become available.”
Another local official said two helicopters fired on the Afghan National Army outpost from two sides.
“I don’t know why the foreign forces did it. It was a proper army post, and it had a big Afghan flag waving over it, too,” said Mohammad Ramin Amin, the district chief of Baraki Barak in Logar province.