A U.S. soldier is being held in Afghanistan for allegedly massacring 16 Afghan civilians, including many women and children. The soldier reportedly left his base on Sunday and attacked civilians in two villages. In one village, he reportedly gathered 11 bodies and set them on fire, including the bodies of four girls younger than six. Some Afghans have claimed more than one soldier carried out the attacks. The massacre comes just weeks after a series of deadly protests over U.S. soldiers burning copies of the Koran at a U.S. air base. Nadir Naderi, an Afghan human rights activist, spoke out.

Nadir Naderi: “These acts will undermine all the efforts of stabilization of Afghanistan, but also it raises serious questions about the discipline into the forces that are involved in Afghanistan, into their operation. It also provides more tools to the hands of the insurgents, to provoke people against the Afghan government and its international partners.”

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said, “This is an assassination, an intentional killing of innocent civilians and cannot be forgiven.” President Obama and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta called Karzai on Sunday to apologize.