Afghan Civilian Deaths Stir NATO Unease

An Afghan street vendor cleans dust from his mirrors which are for sale, at the market in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Thursday, May 24, 2007. Three recent U.S. special forces operations that killed at least 90 Afghan civilians have caused friction with America's NATO partners, who are concerned the killings hurt the standing of Western troops fighting the Taliban insurgency. (AP Photo/Musadeq Sadeq) (Musadeq Sadeq - AP)

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Recent U.S. special forces operations that killed 90 Afghan civilians have caused friction with America's NATO partners, who are concerned that such deaths hurt the standing of Western troops fighting the Taliban insurgency.

The deaths involved troops from the 12,000-member U.S.-led coalition and not NATO's 37,000-member International Security Assistance Force. But NATO officials fear that Afghans and others don't understand the distinction.

Mounting civilian casualties have already dented support for the international mission, sparking angry demonstrations and a warning from President Hamid Karzai that Afghans can accept them no longer.

German Defense Minister Franz Josef Jung said Wednesday the recent operations by U.S.-led troops exposed the need for restraint.

"We have to do everything to avoid that civilians are affected," Jung said on Germany's ZDF television. "We are in talks with our American friends about this."

Insurgency-related violence has spiked in 2007, with more than 1,800 people killed, according to an Associated Press count based on U.S., NATO and Afghan reports.

They include about 135 civilians killed by U.S. or NATO action, a figure that also could undermine support in Western countries, especially in Europe, for the faraway deployment. About 135 civilians have also been killed by Taliban suicide bombs and attacks.

NATO's counterinsurgency strategy focuses on separating fighters from the general population and strengthening the Afghan government. The U.S.-led coalition's counterterrorism mission involves taking out al-Qaida or Taliban leaders and cells of skilled fighters.

While troops from the two missions communicate often and at times work together, they operate under different command structures and don't always coordinate their actions.

U.S. special operations have created "a fallout that is negative because the collateral damage and particularly the civilian casualties are seen as unduly high, certainly by the Afghan people. This is of concern to us," said Daan Everts, the senior NATO civilian in Afghanistan.

Everts said there is not a "complete disconnect" between the coalition and ISAF, but that there is "room for more coordination and consultation that would prevent possible mishaps."

Reports of killing Taliban militants are often received badly in European capitals where officials want to sell the mission as reconstruction and development, not just military might.