Pakistan denies approving deadly NATO airstrike

Pakistan denied on Friday that its forces had given the go-ahead for a NATO airstrike near the Afghan border that killed 24 Pakistani troops.

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A Pakistani military official issued a statement in response to a report in The Wall Street Journal Friday that the attack had been approved because the Pakistani commanders were unaware their own forces were in the area.

NBC's Nightly News last Monday also reported that U.S. officials familiar with the operational details of the attack had said Pakistan's military had given its permission for the airstrike.

NBC News' sources said it was likely the communications took place at a local level and did not make it all the way to the top of the chain of command of Pakistan or the United States, before the attack took place.

The Pakistan statement Friday said that "wrong information about area of operation was provided to Pakistani Officials (a) few minutes before the strike."

It also alleged that U.S. helicopters and fighter jets had already engaged the Pakistani checkpost "without getting clearance."

Story: 'Enough is enough': Grieving Pakistan questions its role in US war on terror

The official further claimed that U.S. officials at the Border Coordination Center "later apologized privately to Pakistani officials" for providing the wrong information and engaging the post without clearance.

Last weekend's cross-border attack has caused public outrage in Pakistan, where the government has pulled out of next week's international conference on Afghanistan and threatened to end support for the U.S.-led war there if its sovereignty is violated again.

Commandos under fire
The Wall Street Journal report said an Afghan-led assault force that included U.S. commandos was hunting Taliban militants when it came under fire from an encampment along the border with Pakistan.

The commandos thought they were being fired on by militants who turned out to be Pakistani military personnel who had established a temporary campsite, the Journal reported, citing U.S. officials.

Video: US-Pakistan relations strained following airstrike (on this page)

According to the initial U.S. account from the field, the commandos requested airstrikes against the encampment, prompting the team to contact a joint border-control center to determine whether Pakistani forces were in the area, a U.S. official said.

The border-control center is manned by U.S., Afghan and Pakistani representatives.

But the U.S. and Afghan forces conducting the Nov. 26 commando operation had not notified the center in advance that they planned to strike Taliban insurgents near that part of the border, the official said.

When called, the Pakistani representatives at the center said there were no Pakistani military forces in the area identified by the commandos, clearing the way for the airstrikes, the U.S. officials said.

Pakistan releases 1st pics of attacked border posts

Washington has called it a tragic accident and offered its condolences, promising a full investigation. It has not apologized.

"There were lots of mistakes made," the newspaper quoted an official as saying.

The Journal said U.S. officials have in the past expressed reservations about notifying the Pakistanis about operations, because of concerns that mission details could leak out.

It added that the officials cautioned that the preliminary account was based mainly on interviews with members of the commando team and could change as more information was gathered.

A formal report on the incident is due to be completed by U.S. military investigators by Dec. 23.

NBC News and Reuters contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45520030/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/

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