At least 27* civilians have died following a NATO air strike on a road convoy in southern Afghanistan on Sunday.

NATO fighter jets are reported to have attacked the three-vehicle convoy on the - mistaken - basis that it was transporting Taliban fighters. Three passenger vans were destroyed in the raid, which took place in a Taliban-controlled area in the border region of the provinces of Uruzgan and Daykundi. It has also been reported that the NATO forces believed the vehicles were making their way to a NATO base.

Dutch not involved
Many of the injured, including a woman and a child, were taken to the Dutch military base in Uruzgan, Camp Holland, near the town of Tarin Kowt. However, the Dutch defence ministry has made it clear that no Dutch troops were actually involved in the air strike.

The Afghan government has strongly condemned the attack, President Hamid Karzai spoke of an "unjustifiable" incident.

* earlier reports stated 33 deaths.