RAF drone killed four Afghan civilians

FOUR Afghan civilians were killed and two more wounded when an RAF drone targeting insurgent leaders fired on two trucks in Helmand province.

It is the first time civilians have died in an attack by one of the UK's Reaper planes. The attack, designed to kill a Taleban commander, comes amid growing disquiet over the use of unmanned aircraft in conflict zones.

The group was struck on 25 March after forces tracking the enemy on the ground correctly identified members of the Taleban in two vehicles and signalled for the Reaper to attack.

Its pilots were thousands of miles away at an American air force base in Nevada when they were instructed to fire in the Now Zad district of Helmand.

But while killing the insurgent commander and an associate, they also struck Afghan civilians who were inside the vehicles. A "significant" quantity of explosives stored in the trucks was also destroyed.

An International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) investigation later concluded the Reaper crews had acted in accordance with "extant procedures and UK Rules of Engagement".

"Any incident involving civilian casualties is a matter of deep regret and we take every possible measure to avoid such incidents," the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

Since being introduced in October 2007, the aircraft have destroyed Taleban bomb factories and helped to foil teams laying improvised explosive devices.

Earlier this year, Air Vice Marshal Philip Osborn, air officer commanding No 2 Group, which includes the RAF's intelligence capabilities, said the drone had proved itself "time and time again".

But critics have called into question the ethics of their increasing use in battle.