KUNAR, Feb 13: A Nato air strike killed 10 Afghan civilians, including five children, in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, local officials said, a toll that if confirmed is likely to raise tension between the Afghan government and US-led Nato forces.

The strike, in the Shigal district of Kunar province, was condemned by President Hamid Karzai, who expressed his condolences to the families and announced the deaths would be investigated by Afghan authorities.

Nato’s International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) said it was aware of the reports of civilian deaths but could not confirm them.

“Foreign forces carried out the attack by themselves without informing us,” Kunar Governor Fazlullah Wahidi said.

Four Taliban fighters were also killed in the strike and five civilians wounded, he said. The strike occurred in the village of Chawgam and the 10 dead civilians were from two local families, Mr Wahidi said.

In a statement, Mr Karzai confirmed the incident and reiterated his view that air strikes on Afghan villages were not the solution to fighting terrorism.

“In Wednesday’s air strike which was carried out by Nato forces, two houses were targeted where 10 civilians, including women and children, were martyred and four more wounded,” the statement said.

“We take all allegations of civilian casualties seriously and we are currently assessing the incident to determine more facts,” an Isaf spokesman said.—Reuters