Dozens of civilians were killed Tuesday in a US bombing in Afghanistan. Witnesses say US warplanes bombed scores of homes during clashes with Taliban fighters in the western province of Farah. Villagers reportedly brought truckloads of bodies to their provincial governor’s office. The Red Cross says dozens of civilians were killed, including many women and children. Estimates of the dead range from thirty to as many as 150. The attack comes as Afghan President Hamid Karzai is in Washington for his first White House meeting sine President Obama took office. On Tuesday, Karzai said US-Afghan relations are strong despite tensions over the bombing of Afghan civilians.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai: “We have had ups and downs, especially in the past year and a half, in our relations with America. There were difficult moments over civilian casualties between us. There were tense moments over the issues of aid distribution and corruption and all that. But ladies and gentlemen, through this forum, I would like to inform the American people that the fundamentals of this relationship are very, very strong.”

Karzai says he’ll discuss the latest mass killing of Afghan civilians when he meets Obama later today. The Obama administration has increasingly criticized Karzai since he began vocally condemning US air strikes and calling for a timetable for the withdrawal of all foreign troops.