U.S. rebuffs Afghan leader's call to halt air strikes

By Peter Graff and Will Dunham

KABUL/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on Sunday it would not halt air strikes in Afghanistan as demanded by President Hamid Karzai after civilian deaths, and it denied using burning phosphorus in the attacks.

The U.S. military acknowledged on Saturday that the air strikes in western Afghanistan last week that struck crowded homes in two villages in Farah province had killed civilians. Karzai put the death toll at up to 130 people.

If confirmed, it would be the biggest such case of Western forces killing civilians since they invaded in 2001.

Chanting "Death to America!," hundreds of Kabul university students marched on Sunday in protest against the killings.

"We're going to take a look at trying to make sure that we correct those things we can correct, but certainly to tie the hands of our commanders and say we're not going to conduct air strikes, it would be imprudent," White House National Security Advisor James Jones said on U.S. television.

Asked what reaction he expected from Karzai, Jones said: "I think he understands that we have to have the full complement of our offensive military power when we need it. ... We can't fight with one hand tied behind our back."

But he said the United States would "redouble our efforts to make sure that innocent civilians are not killed."

The Taliban were "using civilians as shields," he said. "So we have to take a look at this, make sure that our commanders understand, you know, the subtleties of the situation, the complexity of it, and do the right thing."