The American soldier, responsible for the carnage, has been taken into custody. The US authorities said they would fully co-operate with the Afghans in this investigation.
A top American and NATO commander in Afghanistan today pledged to probe the tragic incident in which a US soldier killed at least 16 civilians, including nine children and three women in Kandahar.
The American soldier, responsible for the carnage, has been taken into custody. The US authorities said they would fully co-operate with the Afghans in this investigation.
"I pledge to all the noble people of Afghanistan my commitment to a rapid and thorough investigation," General John Allen, Commander of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said in a statement issued by the Pentagon.
Allen said he was "shocked and saddened" by the incident in which a US soldier walked out of his base in the southern Kandahar province and opened fire on men, women and children.
Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai said the victims included nine children and three women.
The tragic incident comes in the wake of Afghan forces killing several Americans working in the country this year and the report of the desecration of Holy Quran by US troops working at the Bagaram air base.
General Allen said ISAF would continue to offer medical care for those who were injured in this shooting. "We will maintain custody of the US service member alleged to have perpetrated this attack. And we will cooperate fully with local Afghan authorities as we ascertain all the facts," he said.
"This deeply appalling incident in no way represents the values of ISAF and coalition troops or the abiding respect we feel for the Afghan people. Nor does it impugn or diminish the spirit of cooperation and partnership we have worked so hard to foster with the Afghan National Security Forces," Allen said.
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