Brussels, Nov 28(ANI): NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has said that he has offered his condolences to Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani over the "tragic, unintended" deaths of 24 Pakistani soldiers in a cross-border airstrike.
The attack on a military checkpoint in Pakistan's Mohmand district also wounded at least a dozen soldiers.
"I have written to the Prime Minister of Pakistan to make it clear that the deaths of Pakistani personnel are as unacceptable and deplorable as the deaths of Afghan and international personnel," the Dawn quoted Rasmussen, as saying in a statement.
"This was a tragic unintended incident. I offer my deepest condolences and sympathy to the families of the Pakistani officers and soldiers who lost their lives or were injured, and to the government and people of Pakistan, following the regrettable incident along the Afghan-Pakistani border," he added.
He also said that he supports the NATO investigation that is under way.
The attack is the worst single incident of its kind since Pakistan uneasily allied itself with Washington following the 9/11 terror attacks.
The incident prompted Pakistan to summon the US Ambassador in Islamabad, lodge a protest with NATO, and shut a vital supply route for NATO troops fighting in Afghanistan.
The Pakistani government also gave the US fifteen days to vacate Shamsi air base. Pakistan had made a similar demand earlier this year, following the raid which killed Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden. (ANI)
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