Nato apologises after killing eight Afghan ‘children’

No definite evidence of weapons was later found at the site, the RAF officer
who led the inquiry said.

Air Cdre Mike Wigston, said: “We were unable to get to the scene of the
bombing until two days after the bombing and though we found some fragments
that are believed to be weapons, that’s all we found.”

A cousin of one victim, who declined to be named, told The Telegraph the
children were unarmed, though said they were led by a mentally-disabled man
from the village who was carrying an axe.

Air Cdre Wigston said the children’s bodies had been buried before
investigators arrived at the village of Geyaba. Mobile phone footage and
photographs suggested they were “young teenagers” aged up to 15 or
16.

“The ages which the villagers have given us have changed over the days,”
he added.

He said he had seen footage from the aircraft’s camera which left him in no
doubt they were armed.

He said: “These were young Afghans. They were adult-sized, athletic,
strong, walking perfectly in the valley. I have no doubt that they were
carrying weapons.” It was not unusual for teenage boys to carry weapons
in the region, he said.

Nato was looking at what help it could now give to Geyaba, he added, including
building a road to the village.

“I absolutely am in no doubt that eight of their young men died on that
day. Who they were and what they were doing we may never know.”

Reports of Afghan civilian casualties continue to cause deep anger against
Nato forces in Afghanistan. A United Nations report published earlier this
month said Nato and Afghan forces had killed 410 civilians in 2011, down
slightly from the previous year. Nearly four-fifths of civilian deaths are
caused by insurgents, the report said.

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