U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration has described victory in the 17-year-old war Afghanistan as reinstalling the same Taliban jihadist group American forces overthrew in late 2001.

The Trump administration has made “reconciliation” between Kabul and the Taliban the primary tenet of its strategy to end the conflict, raging since October 2001 at an estimated cost of nearly $1 trillion as well as a human toll of 2,272 U.S. military fatalities and 20,412 injuries, mostly at the hands of the terrorist group.

This week, amid increased U.S. efforts to pressure the terrorist group to engage in peace negotiations with Kabul, the Taliban claimed responsibility for killing three American service members and wounding three others in the eastern Afghan city of Ghazni.

Trump officials have come out in support of Afghan President Ashraf Ghani’s unconditional offer to the Taliban of a cease-fire and legitimacy as a political group.

“We do look toward a victory in Afghanistan,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis declared in March, adding, “Not a military victory — the victory will be a political reconciliation” with the Taliban.

Taliban narco-jihadis, who already control more territory than during any other time since the American military removed it from power in 2001, have been locked in a stalemate with U.S. troops for years now.

The magnitude of the Afghan Taliban’s manpower and influence has reached historic proportions despite the record number of airstrikes against jihadis in Afghanistan under President Trump, which stood at a record 5,213 bombs so far this year.

Ghani’s offer of political recognition and a truce to Taliban is the “best opportunity to end” the war in Afghanistan, U.S. Gen. John Nicholson, then the top commander of American and NATO troops, added in April.

On Wednesday, Afghan President Ghani reportedly announced that his administration has formed a 12-member team to hold peace talks with the Taliban.

The Trump administration is reportedly exploring the idea of pushing back the looming Afghan presidential elections, scheduled for April.

“Under this scenario, an interim government could include a Taliban representative, and this possibly could open the way for the Taliban to enter into full-fledged peace negotiations, as it has long maintained that the existing Afghan government and constitution are illegitimate,” NBC News reported this week, referring to the Trump administration possibly pushing Kabul to suspend the elections.

An assessment of the U.S. mission in Afghanistan published by the Pentagon’s office of the inspector general (OIG) on November 19 acknowledged that the end state of Trump’s Afghanistan strategy is to pressure the Taliban to reach a “political settlement” with Kabul.

The report, which covers the quarter from July 1 to September 30, noted:

In July, the U.S. Department of State (DoS) appointed Amb. Zalmay Khalilzad, an Afghan national, to serve as Special Representative for Afghan Reconciliation as the Trump administration ramped up its peace-seeking efforts.

Khalilzad is “testing all channels” and talking to as many top Taliban terrorists as possible “as he tries to launch peace negotiations to end the war before Trump can simply pull the plug and order U.S. troops home,” NBC News reported.

“Former officials said the current peace effort showed more promise than a previous U.S. attempt under President Barack Obama, which was plagued by turf battles inside the administration and ambivalence among military commanders, who favored hammering the Taliban on the battlefield before entering into any serious talks,” the news outlet conceded.

Amid the Trump administration’s intensified peace-seeking efforts, a spike in violence at the hands of the Taliban has occurred, a testament to gains in strength made by the terrorist group on the battlefield.

According to the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), terrorist groups, primarily the Taliban, control or contest 45 percent of the war-ravaged country.

Independent and government assessments show that the Taliban’s strength and influence have reached unprecedented levels.

Citing U.S. Forces – Afghanistan (USFOR-A) in its quarterly report, the Pentagon’s IG approximated the strength of the Taliban and its Haqqani Network allies to stand at between 28,000 and 40,000 fighters.

Bill Roggio from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) think-tank dismissed the estimate, noting “Once again, the U.S. military has grossly underestimated the size and scope of the Taliban, despite battling the group head-on for the last 17 years.”

Americans have grown tired of the war in Afghanistan, urging elected officials to bring the U.S. troops back. A Pew Research Center poll in October revealed that about half of Americans (49 percent) believe the United States has mostly failed in achieving its goals in Afghanistan. Only about a third (35 percent) say the United States has mostly succeeded there.

Still, 45 percent say the U.S. made the right decision in invading Afghanistan, while 39 percent believe it was the wrong move.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has noted that everything, including the presence of U.S.-NATO-led troops, is up for discussion in Afghanistan.

Marking a significant shift in U.S. policy long sought by the terrorist group, the Trump administration is engaging directly with the Taliban to end the Afghanistan war.

“Both the Defense Department and State Department are acting as if withdrawal is on the table, sooner or later,” Thomas Joscelyn from the FDD think-tank told NBC News.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan – At least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters as Afghan government forces battled insurgents in southern Helmand province overnight, provincial officials said Wednesday.

In the eastern part of the capital Kabul, Taliban insurgents staged a coordinated attack against security forces when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and fighters then engaged them in a gun battle, an Afghan official said.

Attahullah Afghan, who heads the provincial council, said most of the casualties in Helmand – which included men, women and children – incurred in an airstrike that hit a house on Tuesday night during military operations in the province, a Taliban heartland.

A child that was wounded in the attack was brought to a hospital in the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, he said.

A statement from governor’s office in Helmand confirmed that 16 Taliban insurgents were killed and said that an investigation was underway to determine the number of civilian casualties.

It said the militants had stockpiled ammunition in the area of the operation, which could have caused civilian casualties. There was also a car packed with explosives that ignited during the strike, the statement added.

Abdul Wadod Popul, a lawmaker from Helmand, also confirmed the civilian casualties. “The area is under Taliban’s control and is very difficult to get a precise number of casualties,” he said in Kabul.

Qari Yusouf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed in a statement sent to the media that all the victims were civilians.

Telephone lines with Helmand were cut on Wednesday and it was not immediately possible to reach local officials and civilians there. Also, it was not clear if the operation was being conducted exclusively by Afghan forces or whether NATO forces were there to support the Afghans.

The Taliban carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan forces. The U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.

The Helmand fighting came as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in Geneva, attending a two-day U.N.-backed conference that ends Wednesday and that is expected focusing on development, peace and security in the war-battered country.

Najib Danish, spokesman for Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry, said the attack in Kabul took place when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and then other insurgents started a gun battle with forces in the area.

At least 11 wounded were transferred to hospitals from the attack site, said Wahid Majroh, spokesman for the Public Health Ministry.

Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said the target of the attack may have been a security company called G4S. He had no details on the company but contact information on the website of a multinational security company called G4S is in London.

Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on Twitter.

Also on Wednesday in Kabul, the home of former intelligence chief Amarullah Saleh was attacked by three insurgents but was quickly repelled by Saleh’s security guards, said Rahmatullah Nabil, also a former intelligence chief in a tweet.

Associated Press writer Amir Shah in Kabul, Afghanistan, contributed to his report.</s>A British security contractor, G4S, says five of its employees, including a Briton, were killed and 32 others injured in an overnight gun-and-bomb attack against one of its compounds in the Afghan capital Kabul.

The company said Thursday five employees have been “seriously” injured.

Afghan officials confirm the attack on the well-guarded facility in Kabul killed a total of 10 people and injured many more.

"We are committed to our security role in support of the people of Afghanistan, and we are determined that incidents such as this will not prevent the vital work that the international community conducts from continuing,” said Charlie Burbridge, the company’s managing director.

The Taliban has claimed responsibly for the suicide raid, saying it inflicted heavy casualties on both Afghan and “foreign occupying” forces inside the compound.

G4S is a leading global security company providing security for the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office in Afghanistan.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the attack began Wednesday with a suicide bomber exploding a vehicle-born bomb, making way for four other heavily armed “martyrdom seekers” to storm the compound.

He claimed the targeted compound was being used to plan attacks in Afghan provinces of Kandahar, Helmand and Nangarhar. Mujahid said the attack was a “response to recent enemy atrocities against civilians" in these provinces.

Afghan officials and residents have confirmed dozens of civilians, including women and children, have been killed in recent airstrikes in Kandahar, Helmand and Nangarhar.

The spike in insurgent attacks comes as the United States has renewed efforts for a negotiated settlement to the conflict with the Taliban.

U.S. special envoy for Afghanistan peace and reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, is leading the peace efforts. He has held two rounds of talks with Taliban representatives in Qatar in recent weeks.

“Yes, we are in a hurry to end the Afghan tragedy, the Afghan people deserve peace. They have been at war for 40 years," he told PBS TV on Wednesday when asked whether he was attempting to strike a peace deal before the Afghan presidential election in April.

“Everyone, starting with the President (Donald Trump), would like to see the war in Afghanistan end, that there would be reconciliation and peace among the warring factions,” he noted.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan – At least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters as Afghan government forces battled insurgents in southern Helmand province overnight, provincial officials said Wednesday.

In the eastern part of the capital Kabul, Taliban insurgents staged a coordinated attack against security forces when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and fighters then engaged them in a gun battle, an Afghan official said.

Attahullah Afghan, who heads the provincial council, said most of the casualties in Helmand – which included men, women and children – incurred in an airstrike that hit a house on Tuesday night during military operations in the province, a Taliban heartland.

A child that was wounded in the attack was brought to a hospital in the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, he said.

A statement from governor’s office in Helmand confirmed that 16 Taliban insurgents were killed and said that an investigation was underway to determine the number of civilian casualties.

It said the militants had stockpiled ammunition in the area of the operation, which could have caused civilian casualties. There was also a car packed with explosives that ignited during the strike, the statement added.

Abdul Wadod Popul, a lawmaker from Helmand, also confirmed the civilian casualties. “The area is under Taliban’s control and is very difficult to get a precise number of casualties,” he said in Kabul.

Qari Yusouf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed in a statement sent to the media that all the victims were civilians.

Telephone lines with Helmand were cut on Wednesday and it was not immediately possible to reach local officials and civilians there. Also, it was not clear if the operation was being conducted exclusively by Afghan forces or whether NATO forces were there to support the Afghans.

The Taliban carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan forces. The U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.

The Helmand fighting came as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in Geneva, attending a two-day U.N.-backed conference that ends Wednesday and that is expected focusing on development, peace and security in the war-battered country.

Najib Danish, spokesman for Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry, said the attack in Kabul took place when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and then other insurgents started a gun battle with forces in the area.

At least 11 wounded were transferred to hospitals from the attack site, said Wahid Majroh, spokesman for the Public Health Ministry.

Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said the target of the attack may have been a security company called G4S. He had no details on the company but contact information on the website of a multinational security company called G4S is in London.

Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on Twitter.

Also on Wednesday in Kabul, the home of former intelligence chief Amarullah Saleh was attacked by three insurgents but was quickly repelled by Saleh’s security guards, said Rahmatullah Nabil, also a former intelligence chief in a tweet.

Associated Press writer Amir Shah in Kabul, Afghanistan, contributed to his report.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban have denied involvement in a suicide bombing in the Afghan capital that killed at least 55 people.

Tuesday’s attack, which targeted a gathering of hundreds of clerics at a wedding hall in Kabul, bore the hallmarks of a local Islamic State affiliate, which has carried out mass bombings targeting minority Shiites as well as perceived supporters of the U.S.-backed government.

Public Health Ministry spokesman Wahid Majroh said Wednesday that 55 people were killed and 94 others were wounded in the attack, updating a previous toll.

Both the Taliban and the IS affiliate want to overthrow the Afghan government and impose a harsh form of Islamic rule. But they are bitterly divided over leadership, ideology and tactics. The Taliban mainly target security forces and government officials, while IS specializes in sectarian attacks on civilians.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said late Tuesday his group condemns any attack on civilians or religious clerics.

The suicide bomber was able to sneak into a wedding hall where hundreds of Muslim religious scholars and clerics had gathered to mark the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.

The Islamic State group claimed a suicide bombing in June that killed at least seven people and wounded 20 at a meeting of top clerics in the capital. The body of religious leaders, known as the Afghan Ulema Council, had issued a decree against suicide attacks and called for peace talks. IS said it had targeted “tyrant clerics” who were siding with the U.S.-backed government.

The Taliban denied involvement in the June attack but they also denounced the gathering.

Afghan security forces have struggled to combat the twin insurgencies since the U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission in 2014, shifting to a support and counterterrorism role. President Donald Trump’s decision last year to send in additional U.S. forces has had little if any impact on the ground.

Copyright © 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — At least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters as Afghan government forces battled insurgents in southern Helmand province overnight, provincial officials said Wednesday.

In the eastern part of the capital Kabul, insurgents staged a coordinated attack against security forces when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and fighters engaged them in a gun battle, an Afghan official said.

Attahullah Afghan, who heads the provincial council, said most of the casualties in Helmand — which included men, women and children — incurred in an airstrike that hit a house on Tuesday night during military operations in the province, a Taliban heartland.

A child that was wounded in the attack was brought to a hospital in the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, he said.

A statement from governor's office in Helmand confirmed that 16 Taliban insurgents were killed and said that an investigation was underway to determine the number of civilian casualties.

It said the militants had stockpiled ammunition in the area of the operation, which could have caused civilian casualties. There was also a car packed with explosives that ignited during the strike, the statement added.

Abdul Wadod Popul, a lawmaker from Helmand, also confirmed the civilian casualties. "The area is under Taliban's control and is very difficult to get a precise number of casualties," he said in Kabul.

Qari Yusouf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed in a statement sent to the media that all the victims were civilians.

Telephone lines with Helmand were cut on Wednesday and it was not immediately possible to reach local officials and civilians there. Also, it was not clear if the operation was being conducted exclusively by Afghan forces or whether NATO forces were there to support the Afghans.

The Taliban carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan forces. The U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.

The Helmand fighting came as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in Geneva, attending a two-day U.N.-backed conference that ends Wednesday and that is expected focusing on development, peace and security in the war-battered country.

Najib Danish, spokesman for Afghanistan's Interior Ministry, said the attack in Kabul took place when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and then other insurgents started a gun battle with forces in the area.

Danish said there were casualties but the number of dead and wounded was not immediately known.

Associated Press writer Amir Shah in Kabul, Afghanistan, contributed to his report.</s>LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan (Reuters) - At least 30 Afghan civilians were killed in U.S. air strikes in the Afghan province of Helmand, officials and residents of the area said on Wednesday, the latest casualties from a surge in air operations aimed at driving the Taliban into talks.

An Afghan boy receives treatment at a hospital after an airstrike in Helmand province, Afghanistan November 28, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer

Afghanistan’s NATO-led force said Afghan government forces and U.S. advisers came under fire from Taliban fighters in a compound in Garmsir district and called in an air strike, but the ground forces were not aware of any civilians in or near the compound.

Helmand provincial governor Mohammad Yasin Khan said troops had called in air strikes against Taliban fighters in Garmsir, causing both civilian and Taliban casualties.

A resident of the area called Mohammadullah said the clash began late on Tuesday.

“Foreign forces bombed the area and the bombs hit my brother’s house,” he said.

He said women and 16 children were among the dead.

Another resident, Feda Mohammad, said some victims were still buried in the rubble of the compound.

“The area is under the control of Taliban but all of the victims of last night’s bombing are civilians,” he said.

The NATO-led Resolute Support forces said Afghan forces and U.S. advisers came under fire from Taliban equipped with machines guns and rocket-propelled grenades.

“At the time of the strike, the ground force was unaware of any civilians in or around the compound; they only knew that the Taliban was using the building as a fighting position,” a force spokeswoman said in a statement.

“We investigate every credible allegation of error and review every mission to learn, adapt and improve,” she said.

The deaths are the latest in a growing civilian casualty toll caused by air strikes and underline the severity of the Afghan war even as moves to begin peace talks have picked up with contacts between U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban representatives.

The United Nations said last month the number of civilian casualties from air strikes in the first nine months of the year was already higher than in any entire year since at least 2009.

The increase has come together with a sharp jump in the number of air operations under a U.S. strategy aimed at stepping up pressure on the Taliban to force them to accept a negotiated end to the 17-year war.

According to figures from the U.S. military, U.S. aircraft had released 5,213 weapons by the end of September, up from 4,361 for the entire 2017 and the highest number since 2011 when there were more than 100,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.</s>KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Taliban insurgents staged a coordinated attack targeting a security firm in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people and wounding 19 others, as the U.S. said an airstrike hours earlier in Helmand province that reportedly killed civilians was conducted by American aircraft.

Wednesday's attack in eastern Kabul took place when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and other insurgents started a gun battle with security forces in the area, Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said.

The assault came hours after provincial officials said at least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters during the overnight battle between Afghan government forces and insurgents in southern Helmand province.

A local official, Attahullah Afghan, said most of the civilian casualties — which included men, women and children — came when an airstrike struck a house in the central Helmand River valley, a Taliban heartland. U.S. officials said it happened in Helmand's Garmsir district.

A U.S. military spokesman in Kabul said the airstrike was carried out by American aircraft called in to back Afghan "special security forces" after they came under heavy Taliban fire.

Maj. Bariki Mallya, the spokesman, said in an email exchange that the airstrike was conducted in self-defense after Taliban fighters armed with rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns retreated into a compound and continued firing on Afghan government forces and their American advisers.

"In self-defense, the ground force called an airstrike," Mallya said. "After the strike, there were secondary explosions, we assess from explosives inside the compound. At the time of the strike, the ground force was unaware of any civilians in or around the compound; they only knew that the Taliban were using the building as a fighting position."

Mallya declined to say what the U.S. knew about civilian casualties or whether the incident was under U.S. investigation. In a prepared statement, he said the U.S. investigates every "credible allegation of error and reviews every mission to learn, adapt and improve."

A statement from the governor's office in Helmand confirmed that 16 Taliban insurgents were killed and said that an investigation was underway to determine the number of civilian casualties.

It said the militants had stockpiled ammunition in the area of the operation, which could have caused civilian casualties. There was also a car packed with explosives that ignited during the strike, the statement added.

Abdul Wadod Popul, a lawmaker from Helmand, also confirmed the civilian casualties. "The area is under Taliban's control and is very difficult to get a precise number of casualties," he said in Kabul.

The resurgent Taliban, who in recent years have taken over nearly half of Afghanistan, claimed the attack Wednesday in Kabul.

Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said the target of the attack was a security company called G4S. He had no details on the company, but the website of a multinational security company named G4S has London contact information.

The attacks were the latest in a series of brutal and near-daily Taliban assaults on military and police forces and government and other installations throughout the country.

The Taliban view the U.S.-backed government in Kabul as a dysfunctional Western puppet and have refused repeated offers to negotiate with it. They carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan security forces.

U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.

The fighting came as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in Geneva, attending a two-day U.N.-backed conference that ends Wednesday and that is focused on development, security and peace efforts in the war-battered country.

Burns reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Amir Shah in Kabul contributed to this report.</s>(KABUL, Afghanistan) — At least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters as Afghan government forces battled insurgents in southern Helmand province overnight, provincial officials said Wednesday.

In the eastern part of the capital Kabul, Taliban insurgents staged a coordinated attack against security forces when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and fighters then engaged them in a gun battle, an Afghan official said.

Attahullah Afghan, who heads the provincial council, said most of the casualties in Helmand — which included men, women and children — incurred in an airstrike that hit a house on Tuesday night during military operations in the province, a Taliban heartland.

A child that was wounded in the attack was brought to a hospital in the provincial capital of Lashkar Gah, he said.

A statement from governor’s office in Helmand confirmed that 16 Taliban insurgents were killed and said that an investigation was underway to determine the number of civilian casualties.

It said the militants had stockpiled ammunition in the area of the operation, which could have caused civilian casualties. There was also a car packed with explosives that ignited during the strike, the statement added.

Abdul Wadod Popul, a lawmaker from Helmand, also confirmed the civilian casualties. “The area is under Taliban’s control and is very difficult to get a precise number of casualties,” he said in Kabul.

Qari Yusouf Ahmadi, a Taliban spokesman, claimed in a statement sent to the media that all the victims were civilians.

Telephone lines with Helmand were cut on Wednesday and it was not immediately possible to reach local officials and civilians there. Also, it was not clear if the operation was being conducted exclusively by Afghan forces or whether NATO forces were there to support the Afghans.

The Taliban carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan forces. The U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.

The Helmand fighting came as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in Geneva, attending a two-day U.N.-backed conference that ends Wednesday and that is expected focusing on development, peace and security in the war-battered country.

Najib Danish, spokesman for Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry, said the attack in Kabul took place when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and then other insurgents started a gun battle with forces in the area.

At least 11 wounded were transferred to hospitals from the attack site, said Wahid Majroh, spokesman for the Public Health Ministry.

Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said the target of the attack may have been a security company called G4S. He had no details on the company but contact information on the website of a multinational security company called G4S is in London.

Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement posted on Twitter.

Also on Wednesday in Kabul, the home of former intelligence chief Amarullah Saleh was attacked by three insurgents but was quickly repelled by Saleh’s security guards, said Rahmatullah Nabil, also a former intelligence chief in a tweet.</s>Rahim Faiez and Robert Burns, The Associated Press 

 



KABUL -- Taliban insurgents staged a co-ordinated attack targeting a security firm in the Afghan capital on Wednesday, killing at least 10 people and wounding 19 others, as the U.S. said an airstrike hours earlier in Helmand province that reportedly killed civilians was conducted by American aircraft.

Wednesday's attack in eastern Kabul took place when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives and other insurgents started a gun battle with security forces in the area, Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said.

The assault came hours after provincial officials said at least 30 civilians were killed along with 16 Taliban fighters during the overnight battle between Afghan government forces and insurgents in southern Helmand province.

A local official, Attahullah Afghan, said most of the civilian casualties -- which included men, women and children -- came when an airstrike struck a house in the central Helmand River valley, a Taliban heartland. U.S. officials said it happened in Helmand's Garmsir district.

A U.S. military spokesman in Kabul said the airstrike was carried out by American aircraft called in to back Afghan "special security forces" after they came under heavy Taliban fire.

Maj. Bariki Mallya, the spokesman, said in an email exchange that the airstrike was conducted in self-defence after Taliban fighters armed with rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine-guns retreated into a compound and continued firing on Afghan government forces and their American advisers.

"In self-defence, the ground force called an airstrike," Mallya said. "After the strike, there were secondary explosions, we assess from explosives inside the compound. At the time of the strike, the ground force was unaware of any civilians in or around the compound; they only knew that the Taliban were using the building as a fighting position."

Mallya declined to say what the U.S. knew about civilian casualties or whether the incident was under U.S. investigation. In a prepared statement, he said the U.S. investigates every "credible allegation of error and reviews every mission to learn, adapt and improve."

A statement from the governor's office in Helmand confirmed that 16 Taliban insurgents were killed and said that an investigation was underway to determine the number of civilian casualties.

It said the militants had stockpiled ammunition in the area of the operation, which could have caused civilian casualties. There was also a car packed with explosives that ignited during the strike, the statement added.

Abdul Wadod Popul, a lawmaker from Helmand, also confirmed the civilian casualties. "The area is under Taliban's control and is very difficult to get a precise number of casualties," he said in Kabul.

The resurgent Taliban, who in recent years have taken over nearly half of Afghanistan, claimed the attack Wednesday in Kabul.

Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said the target of the attack was a security company called G4S. He had no details on the company, but the website of a multinational security company named G4S has London contact information.

The attacks were the latest in a series of brutal and near-daily Taliban assaults on military and police forces and government and other installations throughout the country.

The Taliban view the U.S.-backed government in Kabul as a dysfunctional Western puppet and have refused repeated offers to negotiate with it. They carry out near-daily attacks on Afghan security forces.

U.S. and NATO troops formally concluded their combat mission in Afghanistan in 2014, but still provide close support to Afghan forces and carry out counterterrorism operations. Some 15,000 American forces are currently serving in Afghanistan.

The fighting came as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani was in Geneva, attending a two-day U.N.-backed conference that ends Wednesday and that is focused on development, security and peace efforts in the war-battered country.

Burns reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Amir Shah in Kabul contributed to this report.
A series of U.S. airstrikes kills at least 30 Afghan civilians, including 16 children, in Garmsir District, Helmand Province. Additional civilians were left wounded or buried in the rubble. The target of the strikes was a suspected Taliban compound. The United States' strategy aims to push the Taliban into talks.