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Edition: U.S. Article Comments (0) Save Email Print Reprints Most Popular Most Shared Peg is dead as China vows yuan flexibility 11:25am EDT Putin boasts new jet fighter better than U.S. plane 17 Jun 2010 Miley Cyrus "no underwear" photo is fake, blogger says 15 Jun 2010 WRAPUP 1-Partner puts blame on BP as spill costs grow 1:03am EDT U.S. urges Kyrgyzstan to end humanitarian crisis | Video 9:19am EDT Partner puts blame on BP as spill costs grow | Video 8:36am EDT "I killed, cut off heads" says repentant Mexico hitman 18 Jun 2010 German student attacks Hell's Angels with puppy 15 Jun 2010 UPDATE 4-Toyota resumes China plant output as strike ends 10:28am EDT BP deploys Costner's oil machine in Gulf cleanup 18 Jun 2010 UPDATE 2-Britain approves GW Pharma's cannabis drug Sativex 18 Jun 2010 Untreated prostate cancer no death sentence 18 Jun 2010 Peg is dead as China vows yuan flexibility 11:25am EDT German student attacks Hell's Angels with puppy 15 Jun 2010 Partner puts blame on BP as spill costs grow | Video 8:36am EDT Euro gets thumbs-up 18 Jun 2010 WRAPUP 1-Partner puts blame on BP as spill costs grow 1:03am EDT Facebook '09 revenue neared $800 million 18 Jun 2010 Twenty-two dead as Turkish troops clash with PKK 8:11am EDT U.S. reverses stance on treaty to regulate arms trade 14 Oct 2009 Fewer Afghan civilians hurt: NATO Dan Williams KABUL Sat Jun 19, 2010 6:14am EDT Related News Even with security, Afghans still face challenges 6:14am EDT A U.S. soldier from Dagger Company, 2-12 Infantry, 4th Brigade patrols the town of Sundray in the Pesh Valley in Afghanistan's Kunar Province August 6, 2009. Credit: Reuters/Tim Wimborne KABUL (Reuters) - Despite their boosted deployment and increased losses, foreign forces have been inflicting relatively fewer Afghan civilian casualties due to more stringent rules of engagement, a top coalition spokesman said on Saturday. Winning over civilians while reinforcing and stepping up military sweeps of Taliban-held areas is a centerpiece of the strategy formed over the past year by U.S. General Stanley McChrystal, the commander of foreign forces in Afghanistan. World But with the clock ticking on planned troop pullouts, the United States and allies in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) are troubled by its daily death tolls as well as Afghan losses that can reach triple figures in any given month. Presenting data from the last three months compared to the same period in 2009, ISAF spokesman Brigadier-General Josef Blotz said there were 7.8 percent fewer clashes involving civilians, with 44.4 percent fewer killed or wounded by coalition troops. "There is more oversight. There is better training and education," Blotz said in explanation. "And there are of course a couple of ongoing programs, for example, in the area of escalation of force procedures, because these contacts in the past were one of the major sources, if I may say so, of civilian casualties." Some 82 percent fewer civilians have been falling casualty to ISAF air strikes, and 52 percent fewer have been accidentally shot by coalition troops, Blotz told a press conference. He did not give the total figures that the percentages were based on. Asked about ISAF losses -- according to ICasualties.org, 139 have died in combat since March 18, a spiraling rate for the 9-year-old conflict -- Blotz attributed the trend mainly to the insertion of 39,000 new, mostly U.S. troops in Afghan hotspots. "The higher number of forces leads to a higher number of confrontations and, unfortunately, to higher casualties," he said. "It has to be tougher before it gets easier, and that is the situation we are in." He said there was no significant change to the improvised explosive devices (IEDs) or small arms favored by the Taliban, but accused insurgents of turning increasingly against innocents. "In the same period of time, the number of civilian casualties caused by the insurgency increased by 36 percent," he said. "Their activities show more and more desperation." The Taliban are responsible for most civilian deaths in Afghanistan, but the hardline group frequently denies blame for bomb attacks against foreign or government targets that kill ordinary Afghans. Blotz blamed the Taliban for a bombing that killed 40 people at a wedding in south Afghanistan last week, though the insurgent group denied responsibility. (Editing by David Fox) World Add a Comment *We welcome comments that advance the story directly or with relevant tangential information. We try to block comments that use offensive language or appear to be spam and review comments frequently to ensure they meet our standards. If you see a comment that you believe is irrelevant or inappropriate, you can flag it to our editors by using the report abuse links. Views expressed in the comments do not represent those of Reuters. © Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters Editorial Editions: Africa Arabic Argentina Brazil Canada China France Germany India Italy Japan Latin America Mexico Russia Spain United Kingdom United States Reuters Contact Us Advertise With Us Help Journalism Handbook Archive Site Index Video Index Reader Feedback Analyst Research Mobile Newsletters RSS Podcasts Widgets Your View Labs Thomson Reuters Copyright Disclaimer Privacy Professional Products Professional Products Support Financial Products About Thomson Reuters Careers Online Products Acquisitions Monthly Buyouts Venture Capital Journal International Financing Review Project Finance International PEhub.com PE Week FindLaw Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. 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