Twelve days ahead of the pine-nut harvest season, the governor of Afghanistan�...
JALALABAD, Afghanistan/KABUL - Twelve days ahead of the pine-nut harvest season, the governor of Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province received a letter from village elders in the Wazir Tangi area about their plans to recruit 200 laborers and children to pluck the dry fruit.
Taliban insurgents and Islamic State fighters have been battling each other for control of the province’s natural resources. U.S. and Afghan forces routinely launch air strikes to regain control over territory lost to militant groups. “We had huddled together around small bonfires and we were discussing the security situation in our villages, but suddenly everything changed. There was destruction everywhere,” said Akram Sultan, one of the survivors who hid behind a tree before running into the forest along with some children.
“The warring sides had given their consent and contractors were hired to bring in laborers from neighboring provinces ... no illegal activity was being pursued, but even then, the U.S. drone killed innocent people,” Sohrab Qadri, a member of the Nangarhar provincial council, told Reuters. “Initial indications are members of Daesh were among those targeted in the strike,” Leggett said, using a term for Islamic State. “However, we are working with local officials to determine whether there was collateral damage.”There has been no comment from Islamic State or information about casualties it sustained in the drone strike. The U.S. official did not comment on casualty figures.
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