A U.S. airstrike on a compound in Afghanistan's Helmand province on Friday mistakenly killed at least a dozen Afghan policemen, according to the local media.

A statement by U.S. Forces-Afghanistan confirmed the strike, but did not include a casualty toll, saying only that "local security personnel aligned with Afghan government forces" were killed in the airstrike in Gereshk district in the southern Helmand province.

Afghanistan's TOLO News said the fatalities included two police commanders. The Washington Examiner quoted a U.S. military official as saying a U.S. drone conducted the strike.

"During a U.S.-supported ANDSF (Afghanistan National Defense and Security Forces) operation, aerial fires resulted in the deaths of the friendly Afghan forces who were gathered in a compound," the U.S. military statement said.

"We would like to express our deepest condolences to the families affected by this unfortunate incident," the statement said.

Afghan forces have been engaged in a large-scale military operation against the Taliban in the Gereshk district since Thursday, according to TOLO news.