The death toll of civilians killed in a US air attack on a village in Afghanistan in August was more than four times higher than first admitted by the US military, the New York Times reported Wednesday, citing US army sources quoting an internal probe, repoted dpa.
At least 30 civilians had been killed in US airstrikes on Azizabad in the province of Herat in western Afghanistan, the daily reported.
The figures contradicted earlier claims by the US military that seven civilians and between 30 and 25 suspected insurgents had been killed.
According to both Afghan sources and a UN report, 90 civilians, including 60 children, had died in the attacks.
The source of the information was two US army representatives who quoted an enquiry into the incident led by US Air Force General Michael W Callen, the report said.
The newspaper also reported that fewer than 20 suspected rebels had been killed in the attacks, according to the new enquiry which had been ordered by the commander of US troops in Afghanistan, David McKiernan, in early September.
Callan and his team had analysed the site of the attacks, spoken with villagers and investigated new evidence, including video recorded on mobile phones, the two army sources told the New York Times.