A U.S. coalition air strike and clashes with insurgents in southern Afghanistan earlier this week killed 37 civilians and 26 insurgents, according to an Afghan government report released Friday and quoted by Associated Press. The report also accused Taliban of seeking shelter near a wedding party in the Kandahar province's Shah Wali Kot district shortly after ambushing a coalition patrol on Monday, according to the findings compiled by the governor of Kandahar province. The report said that another 27 civilians were wounded in the strike. It added that the government has already paid $2, 000 to families of each victim, and $100 to those who were wounded _ a standard practice in these cases. The majority of the civilians killed were woman and children, the report said.
