Nato attack: Possible action against those involved, says Pentagon
Final inquiry report to determine whether Nato or ISAF forces were at fault.
WASHINGTON:
A Pentagon spokesperson on Wednesday said that possible action against those involved in the Salala check post attack cannot be ruled out, Express News reported.
The spokesperson said that punishments will be handed out on the basis of the final inquiry report, adding that the report will determine whether the attack was a mistake on the part of NATO or ISAF forces.
Pentagon said that NATO and US forces in Afghanistan have been advised to improve cooperation with Pakistan.
Earlier the American military briefed Pakistan’s army chief on its investigation into US air strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers on the Afghan border last month, officials said Tuesday.
A report by military investigators was delivered to General Ashfaq Kayani on Sunday by a US officer based in Islamabad, who explained the findings to the general, Pentagon spokesman Captain John Kirby told reporters.
“We wanted General Kayani to be able to see the entire thing,” he said. The approach represented “an appropriate professional courtesy” to Kayani, he added.
The US and Pakistan have since disagreed about the precise sequence of events in the deadliest single cross-border attack of the 10-year war in Afghanistan.
Pakistan denies shooting first, and accused the Americans of an intentional attack on its troops.
The US report provides more details on the November 25-26 air strikes that were a result of a series of mistakes and botched communications on both sides — reflecting an underlying mistrust between the two countries.
The air strikes have damaged the precarious US-Pakistani partnership and provoked outrage in Islamabad, which retaliated by cutting off NATO supply routes to Afghanistan and evacuation of the Shamsi airbase by US forces.
(Read: US military briefs General Kayani on Nato attack report)
A Pentagon spokesperson on Wednesday said that possible action against those involved in the Salala check post attack cannot be ruled out, Express News reported.
The spokesperson said that punishments will be handed out on the basis of the final inquiry report, adding that the report will determine whether the attack was a mistake on the part of NATO or ISAF forces.
Pentagon said that NATO and US forces in Afghanistan have been advised to improve cooperation with Pakistan.
Earlier the American military briefed Pakistan’s army chief on its investigation into US air strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers on the Afghan border last month, officials said Tuesday.
A report by military investigators was delivered to General Ashfaq Kayani on Sunday by a US officer based in Islamabad, who explained the findings to the general, Pentagon spokesman Captain John Kirby told reporters.
“We wanted General Kayani to be able to see the entire thing,” he said. The approach represented “an appropriate professional courtesy” to Kayani, he added.
The US and Pakistan have since disagreed about the precise sequence of events in the deadliest single cross-border attack of the 10-year war in Afghanistan.
Pakistan denies shooting first, and accused the Americans of an intentional attack on its troops.
The US report provides more details on the November 25-26 air strikes that were a result of a series of mistakes and botched communications on both sides — reflecting an underlying mistrust between the two countries.
The air strikes have damaged the precarious US-Pakistani partnership and provoked outrage in Islamabad, which retaliated by cutting off NATO supply routes to Afghanistan and evacuation of the Shamsi airbase by US forces.
(Read: US military briefs General Kayani on Nato attack report)