On March 4th, US troops killed 16 Afghan civilians after they opened fire following a car bomb attack on their convoy. Eyewitnesses to the incident and some Afghan officials described the US troops firing indiscriminately at civilians in their vehicles and on foot in angry retaliation for the attack. Hundreds of Afghans protested at the scene of the killings, blocking the main road between Kabul and the Pakistan border.

A freelance photographer, Rahmat Gul, working for the AP and a cameraman working for AP Television News said a U.S. soldier forcibly deleted their photos and video showing a four-wheel drive vehicle in which three people were shot to death about 100 yards from the suicide bombing. Khanwali Kamran, a reporter for the Afghan channel Ariana Television, said the American soldiers also deleted his footage and told him that if it is aired "You will face problems". Taqiullah Taqi, a reporter for Afghanistan's largest television station, Tolo TV, said Americans told him 'delete them, or we will delete you."

On March 5th, 9 additional Afghan civilians were killed in a NATO bombing raid in Kapisa province. The nine dead civilians included five women and three children.

US troops kill Afghan civilians | Highway massacre sparks anti-US protests in Afghanistan | More civilians die in Afghanistan | US seizes Afghan shooting footage