Twelve Afghan civilians killed in NATO offensive

"Afghan President Hamid Karzai is deeply saddened by the death of ten civilians when a rocket hit a civilian house during the military operation," said a Sunday statement by the president's office, AFP reported. "The president has ordered an investigation into this incident," the statement added. The statement also added that a number of other people were also wounded.

Some 15,000 US, British and Afghan troops launched an offensive in the town of Marjah, a major Taliban stronghold in Helmand, in Operation 'Moshtarak,' meaning "joint," in Dari.

           The Saturday offensive came weeks after the Afghan president's US-backed government offered reconciliation with members of the Taliban.

However, the Taliban rejected the offer, saying that Karzai's peace offer was prompted by the militants' spreading influence.

NATO has said in a statement the goal of the US-led offensive is to coerce Taliban into joining the Afghan government.

"All of the areas of Marjah and Nad Ali have been taken by the combined forces. They are under our control, almost all of Nad Ali and Marjah," General Aminullah Patiani, the Afghan Army's senior commander, said Monday.

Seven occupation soldiers have been reported killed since Operation Moshtarak was launched before dawn on Saturday.