Five civilians killed, two injured in NATO airstrike in Afghanistan

KABUL, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- Five civilians were killed and two others injured Monday in an airstrike by NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in south Afghanistan, an ISAF press release said Monday night.

"An ISAF airstrike against suspected insurgents accidentally killed five and wounded two civilians in the Zhari district of Kandahar province today," said the press release.

"A joint Afghan-ISAF patrol observed the individuals digging along a path, and believed that the individuals were emplacing an IED," the press release said.

"The joint patrol called for an airstrike. Following the strike, the Afghan-ISAF patrol approached the scene and determined the individuals had not been emplacing an IED," it added.

The event was not part of Operation Moshtarak, a massive operation conducted by 15,000 NATO and Afghan forces in the neighboring Helmand Province, south Afghanistan, since Saturday, it added.

The incident came one day after 12 civilians were killed when two U.S. rockets missed their targets and slammed into a house outside Marjah in Helmand Province during Operation Moshtarak.