At least 15 people are believed to have died after a U.S. service member came out of his base in southern Afghanistan early Sunday and started shooting Afghan civilians.
An Associated Press photographer reported seeing that number of dead as victims were counted in the villages of Alkozai and Balandi in the Panjwai district of Kandahar province.
People were both killed and wounded in the shooting spree, the provincial governor, Tooryalai Wesa, told reporters.
NATO forces spokesman Justin Brockhoff said a U.S. service member had been detained as the alleged shooter but did not provide details on the incident. He said the coalition had reports of "multiple wounded" but none killed. The wounded were receiving treatment at NATO medical facilities, he said.
The unidentified service member was being held at a NATO base and U.S. forces are investigating the shooting in co-operation with Afghan authorities, Brockhoff said. He said it was not clear if the alleged shooter knew the victims.
The Afghan Interior Ministry strongly condemned the shooting and a spokesman vowed it would be "fully investigated," Reuters reported. Sediq Sediqqi told the news agency the soldier burst into homes a few hundred metres from his base in the middle of the night and began shooting.
The incident comes after weeks of tense relations between U.S. forces and their Afghan hosts following the burning of Qur'ans and other religious materials at an American base. Though U.S. officials apologized and said the burning was an accident, the incident sparked violent protests and attacks that killed about 30 people.
Six U.S. troops have been killed in attacks by their supposed Afghan colleagues since the Qur'an burnings came to light.