Afghan airstrike

Families of civilian victims of the German airstrike in Afghanistan in September will receive compensation through long-term support projects rather than monetary payments, a German lawyer for the victims' families said at a press conference Thursday.

Karim Popal, an Afghan-born German lawyer based in Bremen who represents some of the Afghans who lost family members in the attack, said he has reached a general agreement with the Defense Ministry on the compensation.

Immediate compensation will aim to help the families through the winter and will include food, clothing, blankets and fuel, he said.

While details and costs of long-term compensation projects have not yet been negotiated, Popal said he imagined they would include the establishment of an orphanage, an agricultural cooperative and a carpet weaving facility.

Attack surrounded with controversy

Popal also assured reporters all of his 79 clients are supportive of the idea.

He has rejected claims by some critics that some of his clients have dropped out of the group he represents.

He has also been accused of exaggerating the number of civilian casualties in the attack, which took place on September 4 in the northern city of Kunduz and has caused major controversy in Germany.

According to Popal, a team of six lawyers traveled to Afghanistan to interview survivors of the attack and gather information on the victims. He says he has exact documentation of at least 113 deaths, but that the complete number is likely 137 civilians.

Not included in that number are 20 injured and 22 missing, bringing the number of civilian casualities to 179, he said. A NATO report claims that up to 142 were killed.

acb/AP/Reuters
Editor: Michael Lawton