In Afghanistan, at least eight civilians have been killed in a NATO bombing in the southern Helmand province. NATO says its forces were responding to nearby insurgent gunfire. The attack came after Afghan President Hamid Karzai renewed a demand for an end to US-led air strikes following last month’s bombing deaths of an estimated 140 people. The Pentagon, meanwhile, is now reviving its attempt to downplay the toll, saying between twenty to thirty civilians were killed.