The Haska Meyna wedding party airstrike was an attack by
United States military
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is th ...
forces on 6 July 2008, in which 47
Afghans were killed. The group was escorting a bride to a wedding ceremony in the groom's village in
Haska Meyna District
Haska Meyna ( ps, هسکه مېنه), also called Deh Bala District, is a district in the south of Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan, bordering on Pakistan. Its population, which is 100% Pashtuns
Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also ...
of
Nangarhar Province,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
.
The
United States Government
The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a feder ...
denied that civilians were killed in the incident. An investigation by the
Afghan Government
The government of Afghanistan, officially called the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is the central government of Afghanistan, a unitary state. Under the leadership of the Taliban, the government is a theocracy and an emirate with political powe ...
disagreed and determined that 47 civilians, including the bride, had been killed.
Summary of events
On 6 July 2008, many Afghan civilians were walking in an area called Kamala in Haska Meyna District of the eastern province of Nangarhar. When the group stopped for a rest, it was hit in succession by three bombs from United States military aircraft.
The first bomb hit a group of children who were ahead of the main procession, killing them instantly.
A few minutes later, the aircraft returned and dropped a second bomb in the center of the group, killing many women.
The bride and two girls survived the second bomb, but were killed by a third bomb while trying to escape from the area.
Hajj Khan, one of four elderly men who were escorting the party, stated that his grandson was killed and that there were body parts everywhere.
Relatives from the groom's village stated it was not possible to identify the remains, and buried the 47 victims in 28 graves.
An investigation ordered by President
Karzai and led by a nine-man commission of the senate found that 47 civilians including the bride had been killed.
Burhanullah Shinwari Burhanullah Shinwari was the deputy chairman of the upper house of Afghanistan's legislature.
In July 2008 he led a delegation of legislators to investigate the Deh Bala wedding party bombing
The Haska Meyna wedding party airstrike was an ...
, a member of the commission, told the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
that there were 39 women and children among those killed, and that eight of those who died were between the ages of 14 and 18. Another nine people were wounded in the attack.
U.S. forces stated they had been targeting an
force, labeled a "target of opportunity," that was evidently targeting a nearby base with mortars.
recorded a track protesting the bombing entitled "Welcome to Your Wedding Day" on their second album ''
''.