The Afghan government has issued an official report on the US air strike earlier this week that hit a wedding party in Kandahar Province. Initial indications from the scene said 40 civilians were killed, and the final report says that 37 civilians were killed, in addition to 26 insurgents.
The Afghan reported added that the government had already paid $2,000 to the families of each victim killed in the US strike, and $100 to each person wounded.
A US official claimed to have “firsthand” reports indicating that the Taliban were holding the wedding party captive in an attempt to provoke the US strike which killed them. The villager whose niece was being married said the fighting between Taliban and US forces was about half a mile from his home, where the party was, and he didn’t mention being held captive.
Not exactly the festive post-wedding celebration the bride was hoping for, but she did make $100 by being injured in the strike. According to her father, several of her relatives were among those killed, including two brothers and her grandmother.