US General Dan McNeill said this morning a preliminary investigation into a US bombing raid in central Afghanistan had established there had been civilian casualties, and a more formal probe would be set up.
Mr McNeill said the Afghan people had reported 48 people died and 117 people were wounded in the raid on several villages close to Deh Rawud in the rugged central province of Uruzgan in the early hours of July 1st.
"We have determined there were civilian casualties," Mr McNeill told a news conference in Kabul after a joint US-Afghan team returned from the area.
"We will initiate all formal investigations to determine what caused these civilian casualties and what we can do or implement to make sure they do not recur."
Mr McNeill said US forces had reported Monday's air strike in the homeland of former Taliban leader Mohammad Mullah Omar was launched in response to hostile fire from the ground.
Villagers in the rugged central province of Uruzgan have said they were merely firing rifles into the air to celebrate a wedding party, in line with local traditions.