Karzai decries civilian toll in offensive

Afghanistan can no longer accept or understand civilian deaths, President Hamid Karzai said after officials reported that 51 villagers were killed during a U.S.-led operation against suspected Taliban militants in Herat province.

However, the U.S. military maintained it had no reports of civilian casualties among the 136 suspected Taliban killed, despite allegations that women and children were among the dead.

In Kabul, the Afghan capital, a lawmaker who briefly served as prime minister was shot and killed outside his home, police said. Abdul Saboor Farid, a member of parliament, was prime minister for one month in 1992 when the country plunged into a bitter civil war after the defeat of Soviet forces.