KABUL: Ten civilians, mostly school children, have been killed during Western military operations in eastern Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai's office said Monday, citing "initial reports".

Karzai condemned the killings, which his statement said took place in Kunar province on the border with Pakistan on Saturday.

"Initial reports indicate that in a series of operations by international forces in Kunar province... 10 civilians, eight of them school students, have been killed," the statement said.

"President Karzai strongly condemns the operation which caused civilian deaths and has appointed a delegation to investigate the incident," it said.

A senior official in the Afghan government, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the death toll could change because investigations were ongoing.

Politicians representing Kunar walked out of an important parliamentary session debating appointments to Karzai's new cabinet to protest the civilian casualties, television showed.

When contacted on Sunday, NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) had no information on any operations or casualties in Kunar.

A senior Western military official told AFP that US Special Forces have been conducting operations against militants in the border regions of Kunar.

"They have been killing a lot of Taliban and capturing a lot of Taliban," he said, speaking on condition that he not be named.

The operations were being conducted independently of NATO and coalition forces, which number more than 110,000 and are fighting to eradicate the Taliban.