Nine killed in US airstrike in E Afghanistan

At least nine people have been killed in a US assassination drone attack in eastern Afghanistan, Press TV reports.

Local sources said on Saturday that the airstrike hit an area in the province of Nuristan.

The victims were members of the Taliban militant group, the sources said.

The Taliban, however, have made no comments on the fatal incident so far.

On January 14, a similar US airstrike in Parwan Province killed seven children and one woman.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai strongly condemned the aerial attack and ordered an investigation into the incident, which also left a dozen people wounded.

Many people have lost their lives in US-led airstrikes and operations in various parts of Afghanistan since the invasion of the country in 2001, with Afghans becoming increasingly outraged at the deadly assaults.

The United States claims the airstrikes target militants, but local sources say civilians have been the main victims.

The Afghan president has repeatedly questioned the legality of the US drone strikes and on numerous occasions has called on Washington to stop the attacks.

The United Nations says the US-operated drone strikes pose a growing challenge to the international rule of law.