President Bush has telephoned Afghan President Hamid Karzai to offer his sympathies to the families of Afghan civilians killed in a U-S air raid.
White House officials say the two leaders Friday discussed the on-going fact-finding mission into the incident and the fight against terrorism.
Afghanistan says the raid killed 40 civilians in Uruzgan province last Sunday. The U-S military says troops received reliable information that Taleban and al-Qaida operatives were in the region, and that they directed a strike at what were believed to be the sites of anti-aircraft fire.
Thursday, Mr. Karzai said he will ask U-S-led coalition forces to coordinate their operations with the Afghan Defense Ministry to avoid civilian casualties. He says the Afghan people should not be hurt by the international campaign against terrorism and Afghanistan's former rulers, the Taleban.
The governor of Uruzgan province (Jaan Mohammad) says he wants the U-S military to hand over the "informers" who provided the information that led to Sunday's attack.