US-led raid kills 17 civilians: Afghan president

Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned on Thursday a U.S.-led coalition military operation that his office said killed 17 civilians, including women and children. The U.S. military said only militants were killed in the operation, which it said was aimed at the Taliban's roadside bomb network in the eastern Laghman province. Civilian deaths caused by foreign troop operations when hunting militants have undermined support for foreign forces and are a sore point between the Afghan government and its allies. "Based on the reports, during a coalition operation, 17 civilians including women and children were killed among militants in Laghman province," Afghan President Hamid Karzai said in a statement. "The Afghan government has always clarified its stance in this regard and wants an end to such incidents, which only divert the war on terror from its main path and endanger our successes," the statement said.