Pakistan Says NATO Helicopters Kill Dozens of Soldiers

Pakistani officials on Saturday accused NATO of conducting a helicopter attack on two military checkpoints at the northwestern border with Afghanistan, in strikes that military officials said killed at least 25 soldiers. In response, Pakistan has closed the border crossing, blocking NATO supplies from entering Afghanistan. The strikes are likely to further complicate an already disintegrating relationship with the United States, which has accused Pakistan of not doing enough to stop attacks on American forces in Afghanistan by militants taking shelter in Pakistan’s northwestern tribal areas.

In a statement, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force said that it was investigating and expressed its condolences to the families of those killed.

“This incident has my highest personal attention and my commitment to thoroughly investigate it to determine the facts,” Gen. John R. Allen, commander of the NATO-led forces, said in the statement. “My most sincere and personal heartfelt condolences go out to the families and loved ones of any members of Pakistan security forces who may have been killed or injured.”

A senior military official said political and military leaders were meeting to agree on a response to what he called an unprovoked attack.

The Pakistan prime minister, Yusuf Raza Gilani, “strongly condemned the NATO/I.S.A.F. attack,” according to a statement released by the Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Barrister Masood Kausar, the governor of northwestern Kyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province, called the attacks “unprovoked and highly condemnable” while talking to AAJ TV, a private news network.

“This incident is highly regrettable and condemnable. We think there is no justification,” Mr. Kausar said. “This is not a small incident. It is being taken very seriously.”

 
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