U.S. and Afghan officials say they have started separate investigations into the killings of Afghan civilians last Friday by a U.S air strike carred out during a search operation for missing American forces.
A spokesman for President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday condemned the death of up to 17 civilians in mountainous Kunar province, saying it had saddened the president.
U.S. military officials have apologized for the killings and said they regret the loss of innocent lives. They said they are investigating the incident to prevent future occurrences.
U.S. military officials say they have recovered bodies of two of the Navy SEALs missing in the region since last Tuesday. They say so far only one commando from that team has been rescued, while operations continue to recover the remaining team members.