Foreign forces killed an Afghan civilian Sunday after opening fire at a vehicle in a southern district that has been the site of protests, NATO said.
The Afghan man died Sunday after he was shot in the chest, NATO said in a statement.
He was one of six people traveling at a "high speed" in a large vehicle with no headlights, it said. The vehicle stopped after 'international soldiers' fired three to five rounds into the grill.
The man was transported to a medical facility at Forward Operating Base Dwyer but died of his wounds. None of the other five passengers was injured.
Garmsir has been the site of protests this week after reports spread that NATO forces had desecrated a Holy Quran. NATO denies this.
Five other Afghan civilians were wounded in the area on Wednesday when U.S. Marines and Afghan forces opened fire upon the protesters outside another military base.
The 10,000 Marines in Helmand mostly arrived as part of a first "surge" of extra forces ordered by U.S. President Barack Obama at the beginning of last year. The Marine contingent is set to double in coming months under a second surge of another 30,000 troops Obama ordered in December.
PHOTO CAPTION
A wounded Afghan villager injured by NATO forces is cared for by a relative in a hospital in Herat in December 2009.
Agencies