KABUL - U.S.-led coalition and Afghan troops launched air strikes against a compound suspected of housing al Qaeda militants in eastern Afghanistan, killing seven children and several militants Sunday, a coalition statement said Monday.
It said the compound also contained a mosque and a madrassa, or Islamic school, in the Zarghun Shah district of Paktika province.
"Coalition forces confirmed the presence of nefarious activity occurring at the site before getting approval to conduct an air strike on the location,'' the statement said.
Early reports said seven children at the school were killed in the strikes and that "several militants'' also were killed, the coalition statement said. Two suspected militants were detained.
"We are saddened by the innocent lives that were lost as a result of militants' cowardice,'' Maj. Chris Belcher, a coalition spokesman, said in a statement.
"This is another example of al Qaeda using the protective status of a mosque, as well as innocent civilians, to shield themselves.''
