Obama briefed on Afghanistan shooting

WASHINGTON: President Barack Obama has been briefed on the killing spree of a US soldier in Afghanistan that claimed 16 lives, a White House official said Sunday.

"We are deeply concerned by the initial reports of this incident, and are monitoring the situation closely," a White House spokeswoman told AFP, adding that Obama "has been briefed" on the incident.

The president's national security cabinet includes the secretaries of state, defense, homeland security and the heads of the CIA and the FBI.

US General John Allen, the US commander of the NATO-led force in Afghanistan promised a "rapid and thorough investigation" into shooting.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said in a statement that the American soldier entered the homes of civilians in the southern Kandahar province and killed 16 people including nine children and three women, and condemned the slaughter as "unforgivable." (AFP)