HERAT CITY (PAN): Four women and four teenaged girls along with a boy were killed in overnight NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) airstrike in the southwestern Farah province, officials and local people said on Wednesday.

The ISAF soldiers targeted a civilian house in Twaran village of the Bakwa district late on Tuesday night, the local people said. A tribal elder Abdullah told Pajhwok Afghan News ISAF bombings killed nine members of a family.

"We dont know what we innocent people do and ISAF soldiers are bombing without care" he said. Police chief Brig. Gen. Khalilullah Rahmani confirmed the bombing and said they have sent a delegation to the area for investigation about the overnight bombing after receiving complaints from the area people.

Deputy governor Muhammad Younus Rasoli confirming the bombing said they got information about Afghan and Pakistani Taliban being gathered in the district.

However, the US-led coalition troops' public affairs chief Lt. Nathan Perry in a statement said: "We do have reports of an incident in Farah where close air support was used and we are aware of allegations of non-combatants casualties."

An investigation has been started about the overnight airstrike, he said, adding that they assure people that coalition troops do not target non-combatants.

The ISAF soldiers killed over 47 civilians in two separate bombings in the eastern Nuristan province during the last two weeks but they claimed they killed only militants.

According to the United Nations reports more than 700 civilians have been perished in different incidents since the start of the current year.

Frm/ajr