Independent tallies have confirmed the claim of an Afghan human rights group that the U.S.-led NATO force has killed more civilians than the Taliban in the first half of this year. U.N. figures show at least 314 civilians died in NATO bombings this year; 279 were killed by the Taliban. The NATO figure does not include anywhere from 45 to 80 civilians reportedly killed in a NATO bombing in Helmand province last week. The Los Angeles Times reports Afghan police recently barred journalists from the scene of a suicide attack on a U.S. military convoy. The police officers explained: “Don’t go close. The Americans might shoot you.”