NATO search "kills Afghans" 

Source: ReutersUS soldiers on patrol in Afghanistan

NATO forces have mistakenly killed seven Afghan soldiers and police in an air strike during a battle while searching for two missing American soldiers in Afghanistan, the Afghan Defence Ministry says.

The NATO-led force has confirmed the deaths and says it is investigating whether its air strikes were responsible.

It says an eighth Afghan, a civilian working with the military, was also killed, and 18 Afghans and five American soldiers were wounded.

The battle took place on Friday during a manhunt for the two soldiers who went missing on Wednesday.

"Yesterday, in a NATO air strike, seven Afghan (soldiers and police) were martyred in Badghis province," says Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman General Zaher Azimy.

The two soldiers from the US 82nd Airborne Division went missing after a resupply mission.

The Taliban and provincial officials in Badghis say they drowned in a river. A Taliban spokesman says the militants have recovered their bodies.

But NATO says its search is still under way.

US Navy Captain Jane Campbell, a spokeswoman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), says "We are saddened by the loss of life and injuries sustained during this very important mission."

The force, along with Afghan authorities, is "currently investigating whether some of the casualties were caused by ISAF close air support", NATO says.

Lieutenant Todd Vician, a NATO press officer, has confirmed that the alliance had launched air strikes during the search.

Reports of missing soldiers in Afghanistan are extremely rare and immediately prompt a large-scale military response.

Troops from more than 40 nations are in the nearly 110,000-strong NATO-led force. Two thirds are American.