Innocent victims caught in Afghan crossfire They are the hidden victims of Australia's secret war: civilians killed by so-called "partnered patrols" of Australian special forces and highly aggressive Afghan security agents or irregulars. While Australia has been pulling back from operating bases and preparing to withdraw regular troops, a component of elite forces are still helping Afghans hunting key Taliban figures in Oruzgan province, and the operations are coming at a high cost. So far this year the patrols have been linked to two civilian deaths including a bungled ambush that resulted in a young woman seeing her unarmed father shot dead and her being wounded in the arm. The patrols have been condemned by some locals including the former commander of the Afghan army brigade based in Oruzgan, Brigadier General Mohammed Zafar Khan. The Australian Defence Force made no official announcement of the casualties when they occurred but has since confirmed the deaths after Fairfax obtained exclusive photos of the victims and interviewed relatives. The Defence Force has argued that in one incident in June a young man who died had been an insurgent, while in the other case involving a wounded girl and her dead father the rules of engagement had been followed. But the relatives say otherwise. In the incident involving the wounding of the girl, Australian special forces joined Afghan forces to set an ambush near a track in a known Taliban area in the Chenartu district, north-east of the provincial capital Tarin Kowt early this year. Abdul Kabir, 55, rode into the area on his motorbike with his daughter Gul Shirina on the back and came under attack from the patrol. The fire killed Kabir and wounded Shirina in the arm. Contacted in Oruzgan last month, Shirina's husband's cousin Mirwais said the pair had been unaware of the ambush and Kabir had been taking his daughter to the family home. Mirwais said Kabir knew of the operation but did not think there would be any problem. But he said Australian and Afghan forces thought Kabir and his daughter were the enemy. "I think they were told to stop but did not hear so they were shot," he said. Mirwais said Shirina now has a bullet in her arm. He said the family was poor and no help or compensation was given to them after the shooting. A Defence Force spokeswoman confirmed a man had been killed and a woman wounded in the shooting at Chenartu. She said the woman left before medical help could be offered. The spokeswoman said the motorcycle driver had been operating the vehicle in a manner consistent with known insurgent behaviour, and had failed to follow instructions to stop the motorcycle. She said the shooting happened near a known insurgent supply route during an "enabled operation," meaning "Australian personnel were operating in support of their Afghan partners who have the lead for planning and executing the mission." The incident had been reviewed and had been found to have occurred in accordance with the rules of engagement. She declined to say if compensation was paid, saying such information was confidential. In the latest incident on June 12, another joint operation became embroiled in the controversial shooting death of Tarin Kowt man Mullah Ghulam, 25. Locals allege Ghulam was unarmed and had been in his garden cutting grass when troops from the patrol had fired over a wall hitting him in the head and killing him instantly. The Defence Force confirmed a complaint but said: "Initial reporting concerning this incident indicates that the individual was armed and that the ADF actions in the engagement were lawful." It refused to provide details while the matter was under review. The use of the patrols has been criticised by Afghans including Brigadier General Zafar. He said the patrols usually involved Afghan internal security (NDS) agents and special militia forces belonging to the local police chief Matiullah Khan. But the Defence spokeswoman said the ADF took the issues of civilian casualties "very seriously." "Our personnel take all reasonable steps to ensure its operations do not put the safety of civilians in jeopardy," she said.