Afghan President Hamid Karzai has appointed a commission to investigate claims that at least 60 civilians were killed in air strikes by NATO planes yesterday.
The deaths are reported to have occurred in the Panjwayi of Kandahar province, in an operation against suspected Taliban militants.
In a statement, Mr Karzai said he was 'deeply touched' by reports of the incident and called for a full investigation.
The International Security Assistance Force has accused the Taliban of using civilians as human shields said it was working with Afghan authorities to determine the number of civilian casualties.
The ISAF said it had killed 48 'suspected militants' in the area, 35km west of Kandahar city.
Last week President Karzai had urged NATO forces to take more care to avoid civilian casualties after up to 20 more people were killed in two bombing raids targeting insurgents.
