Tweet
Afghanistan: German troops kill at least five Afghan soldiers
German forces in northern Afghanistan have killed at least five Afghan soldiers who failed to stop at a checkpoint, only hours after three German soldiers were murdered and others injured during gunfire with insurgents.
The friendly fire incident happened late on Friday, April 2, as two cars coming from Chardara, the most restive district in the Kunduz region, drove by German soldiers on duty without stopping for checks, according to the German army's Operations Command in Potsdam, Germany.
Regional governor of Kunduz province Momed Omar has told reporters that the soldiers "fired at the vehicle of the army and mistakenly killed six army soldiers."
A spokesman for the German Operations Command confirmed five were killed and said the German army regretted the incident, which would be investigated.
However, German Press Agency dpa reporters saw six bodies from the attack at a provincial hospital. NATO and Afghan army officials also confirmed 6 causalities in the shooting. The discrepancy was not immediately explained.
Local government spokesman Muhboballuh Sayedi said Afghan commanders were meeting on Saturday with coalition forces to discuss what happened.
German death toll rises
Earlier on Friday three German soldiers were killed in Kunduz and eight others seriously injured during a clash with Taliban militants.
The attack happened as German Development Aid Minister Dirk Niebel was in Afghanistan, visiting the German military headquarters in the northern city of Mazaar-i-Sharif. He called the attack "shameful."
The soldiers were on a mine-clearing operation when they came under attack by around 100 Taliban fighters, German military officials said.
It was the highest number of casualties the post-war German armed forces have suffered in battle, and it brought the number of German soldiers killed in Afghanistan to 39.
Unpopular war
The Bundeswehr's military involvement in Afghanistan is unpopular with the majority of Germans, but Chancellor Angela Merkel and her coalition government see a continuing commitment to the NATO presence in the country as central to German foreign policy.
Germany has around 4,300 troops in the country and is the third-largest NATO contributor to the war. Most of them operate in provincial reconstruction teams, helping to build up Afghanistan's infrastructure, but have increasingly been subject to attacks.
There are currently more than 120,000 NATO-led troops in Afghanistan. Up to 30,000 additional US troops were ordered by US President Barack Obama in December in a bid to turn the tide of eight-year war.
German forces in northern Afghanistan have killed at least five Afghan soldiers who failed to stop at a checkpoint, only hours after three German soldiers were murdered and others injured during gunfire with insurgents.
The friendly fire incident happened late on Friday, April 2, as two cars coming from Chardara, the most restive district in the Kunduz region, drove by German soldiers on duty without stopping for checks, according to the German army's Operations Command in Potsdam, Germany.
Regional governor of Kunduz province Momed Omar has told reporters that the soldiers "fired at the vehicle of the army and mistakenly killed six army soldiers."
A spokesman for the German Operations Command confirmed five were killed and said the German army regretted the incident, which would be investigated.
However, German Press Agency dpa reporters saw six bodies from the attack at a provincial hospital. NATO and Afghan army officials also confirmed 6 causalities in the shooting. The discrepancy was not immediately explained.
Local government spokesman Muhboballuh Sayedi said Afghan commanders were meeting on Saturday with coalition forces to discuss what happened.
German death toll rises
Earlier on Friday three German soldiers were killed in Kunduz and eight others seriously injured during a clash with Taliban militants.
The attack happened as German Development Aid Minister Dirk Niebel was in Afghanistan, visiting the German military headquarters in the northern city of Mazaar-i-Sharif. He called the attack "shameful."
The soldiers were on a mine-clearing operation when they came under attack by around 100 Taliban fighters, German military officials said.
It was the highest number of casualties the post-war German armed forces have suffered in battle, and it brought the number of German soldiers killed in Afghanistan to 39.
Unpopular war
The Bundeswehr's military involvement in Afghanistan is unpopular with the majority of Germans, but Chancellor Angela Merkel and her coalition government see a continuing commitment to the NATO presence in the country as central to German foreign policy.
Germany has around 4,300 troops in the country and is the third-largest NATO contributor to the war. Most of them operate in provincial reconstruction teams, helping to build up Afghanistan's infrastructure, but have increasingly been subject to attacks.
There are currently more than 120,000 NATO-led troops in Afghanistan. Up to 30,000 additional US troops were ordered by US President Barack Obama in December in a bid to turn the tide of eight-year war.