RAF drone kills four Afghan civilians
Four Afghan civilians were killed and another two injured by a remotely
controlled RAF 'drone' in Helmand province, it has been disclosed.
The attack, which was targeting insurgent leaders and revealed by the Guardian,
including a Taliban commander who was being tracked on the ground, is the
first such time a UK Reaper drone has caused confirmed civilian casualties.
The Reapers, which were being piloted thousands of miles away at a US
Airforce base in Nevada, were instructed to attack two trucks after the
commander was identified. Two insurgents were killed in the process of the
attack, in March this year, but civilians were also in the vehicles.
A Ministry of Defence spokesman last night told The Daily Telegraph: "Any
incident involving civilian casualties is a matter of deep regret and we
take every possible measure to avoid such incidents.
"On 25 March, a UK Reaper, operating in support of ISAF forces, was
tasked to engage and destroy two pick up trucks. The strike resulted in the
deaths of two insurgents and the destruction of a significant quantity of
explosives being carried on the trucks. Sadly, four Afghan civilians were
also killed and a further two Afghan civilians were injured."
He added that an investigation found the Reaper's crews "had been in
accordance with extant procedures and UK Rules of Engagement."
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