The U.S. military dismissed on Friday reports saying scores of Afghanistan civilians were killed in a coalition operation.
A Pentagon spokesman, Patrick Ryder, told reporters that the U.S. military is confident about 30 militants were killed in the battle in the Shindand district of Herat province, but no civilians were included.
The Pentagon made the clarification in response to the report that the Afghan Interior Ministry charged in a statement that 76 civilians, including 50 children and 19 women, died in the operation.
The engagement happened on Thursday when the coalition forces and Afghan forces were ambushed on their way to capture a Taliban commander, according to the U.S. military.
In a separate report, the Afghan Defense Ministry said that five civilians and 25 militants were killed.
"While two civilians were injured during the engagement, they were treated promptly on scene by medical personnel before being medically evacuated to a coalition medical facility," Ryder said.
He also said that the reports about the casualties of the operation had been reviewed by Afghan forces.
Source: Xinhua
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