A day after Afghan armed forces inflicted heavy casualties on Taliban militants in Kunduz, reports emerging from the province suggest that the fighters of Taliban are coercing and beating local residents to allege civilian casualties during the operations.

A Resolute Support spokeswoman SFC Debra Richardson said “There are multiple Afghan reports from the area of the Taliban coercing and beating local Afghan civilians to allege civilians were killed. We have seen this type of reporting in other places as the Taliban attempt to hide their losses by accusing ANDSF and coalition of causing civilians casualties.”

Richardson further added “We are aware of non-combatant casualty claims from those airstrikes. We take all claims seriously and investigate every credible allegation; we review every mission to learn, adapt and improve. We maintain the right to engage the enemy in self-defense and we take every measure to prevent civilian casualties, even as the Taliban intentionally hide behind women and children. We will continue to judiciously and carefully deliver the military pressure necessary to enable a political solution here.”

According to Richardson, Afghan security forces, accompanied by a small advisory team, conducted an operation near Kunduz City. The villagers around Kunduz City requested support from the Afghan security forces to stop the Taliban fighters from extorting taxes, shelter and food from the local populace.

“The Taliban historically mass men, weapons and equipment in small villages around the city in preparation for attacks on Kunduz city. It became clear after the forces landed near the village that Taliban fighters were pre-staged in defensive fighting positions. Intense fighting began as soon as the first boots hit the ground and continued for a consecutive 30 hours. We are fighting in a complex environment and this firefight is a prime example of the challenges Afghan and coalition forces face every day. The Taliban were hiding in civilian homes and maneuvered in and out of compounds without any concern for the families living inside,” she added.

She also added that after killing 87 Taliban fighters and securing the village, some of the ground force maneuvered in vehicles to a security checkpoint. “While approaching the checkpoint, the combined Afghan and coalition ground force was fired on by an unknown assailant at close range from the checkpoint as well as from two other directions,” Richardson said, adding that “The fire from the enemy was indiscriminate and came from multiple directions. While defending themselves, the ground force conducted deconfliction with the ANDSF and no local forces reported being under fire. In self-defense, airstrikes were used to suppress the effective fire from the vicinity of the checkpoint. No bombs were used for this suppression.”