Anger grows at civilian deaths by US, Afghan forces

workers were sleeping on mountainside where y h spent a long day harvesting pine nuts in eastern Afghanistan. Some were in tents, ors lay outside under stars when US airstrike tore into m. Only hours before September 19 strike, businessman who hired m h heard re was a drone over mountain and called Afghanistan's intelligence ncy to remind an official his workers were re as he'd tified ncy days earlier.

"He laughed and said, 'Don't worry y are t going to bomb you,'" businessman, Aziz Rahman, recalled.

Twenty workers were killed in strike, including seven members of one family. A relative, Mohammed Hasan, angrily described body parts y found scattered on ground, gesturing at his arm, his leg, his he.

"This is t ir (Americans') first mistake," said Hasan. "y say 'sorry'. What are we supposed to do with 'sorry?' ... People w are angry. y are so angry with foreigners, with this government."

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Increasing civilian deaths in stepped-up U. airstrikes and operations by Afghan forces highlight conundrum US military and its Afghan allies face, 18 years into war: How to hunt down ir Islamic State group and Taliban enemies, while keeping civilians safe and on ir side.

Complaints have also grown over abuses and killings by a CIA-trained Afghan special intelligence force kwn as Unit 02. In same province, Nangarhar, members of Unit killed four brors during a raid on ir home.

brors' hands were bound and y were shot in he.

Former President Hamid Karzai, in a recent interview with Associated Press, said he didn't want US troops for "one more minute" if deaths of civilians continued.

Some 16,000 civilians have been killed since 2009 in war, according to UN. Overall, civilian deaths are down so far this year, on track to lowest number since 2012. But civilian deaths caused by US and Afghan government forces are rising, surpassing for first time those caused by Taliban and or insurgents, according to a UN report.

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It found that US and Afghan forces killed 717 civilians and injured 680 in first six months of year, up 31 percent from same period in 2018. Taliban and IS killed 531 and wounded 1,437, down 43 percent.

Michael Kugelman, deputy director of Asia Program at Washington-based Wilson Center, said that is because US President Donald Trump has sought to ramp up pressure on battlefield amid negotiations with Taliban and has loosened rules of engment for US forces.

"In effect, Trump ministration has given its blessing to US forces to use a more gloves-off approach on battlefield that raises risk of civilian casualties," he said.

In early September when Trump declared as "de" a deal with Taliban that h seemed imminent, he boasted US h "been hitting our enemy harder than at any time in last ten years."

Earlier this week Defense Secretary Mark Esper said: "We did step up our attacks on Taliban since talks broke down. . . we did pick up pace considerably." 

According to US Air Forces Central Command, US conducted more bombings and drone strikes in Afghanistan in August than in any previous month this year  783, compared to 613 in July and 441 in June.

Dropping more bombs doesn't appear to be working. Taliban are stronger than y have been since ir ouster in 2001, and IS is expanding its footprint, moving into mountains of rast, according to a US Department of Defense intelligence nt. He spoke on condition of anymity because of sensitivity of his work.

In an interview with Associated Press, Afghan Defense Minister Asullah Khaled disputed UN report, saying "we do t have a lot of civilian casualties."

He accused Taliban and ir sympathisers of inflating numbers.

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"I cant say re are civilian casualties from Afghan side but re is a big difference. Taliban is killing people in mosque, in school, in street, and we are trying our best," to avoid civilian casualties, said Khaled.

Khaled seemed to put some blame for deaths in September 19 strike on farmers.

He said y were working on a mountain where IS is kwn to have bases, without informing authorities. But Rahman did inform authorities all way to provincial goverr's office, according to documents dated September 2 and seen by AP.

When he heard of drone over site, Rahman called local office of Afghanistan's intelligence ncy, kwn as National Defense Secretariat, to remind m. Still, strike came.

Initially, US military anunced it h killed 16 Islamic State group fighters in a strike in that area that date. As angry villrs brought bodies of de to provincial capital of Jalalab, US military-backed off that and said incident was being investigated.

More than three weeks after incident, US military said investigation was ongoing. Gen. Scott Miller, chief of US-led coalition in Afghanistan, said best way to decrease civilian casualties is for both sides to reduce violence.

"That said, my commitment to Afghan people is we will be as precise as possible and support your security forces and when something goes wrong ... we will quickly own it and look to provide appropriate compensation for those mistakes," Miller said.