Civilian injuries in Afghanistan’s long war with the Taliban rose last year, with women and children again bearing the brunt of the violence, the
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Civilian injuries in Afghanistan’s long war with the Taliban rose last year, with women and children again bearing the brunt of the violence, the United Nations said in a report on Sunday.
A total of 3,545 civilians were killed in 2015 as a result of the war, the UN report said, with another 7,457 wounded.
“Ground engagements killed and injured the most civilians, followed by IEDs [improvised explosives devices], complex and suicide attacks,” said Danielle Bell, Director UN Human Rights Program. “These tactics combined with targeted killings accounted for a 90 percent of total civilian casualties.”
The figures mark a four percent drop in civilian deaths, but a nine percent rise in civilian injuries, compared to 2014.
The annual report, titled Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict, is based on on-site investigations where possible.
It attributed 62 percent of all civilian casualties to anti-government elements, which includes the Taliban who have been fighting to overthrow the Kabul government for 15 years.
Another 17 percent were blamed on pro-government forces and two percent on international military forces.
#Afghan civilian deaths and injuries from 2009 to 2015. https://t.co/d36DpaukWD #CivCas pic.twitter.com/un8Tbuzb5W
— UNAMA News (@UNAMAnews) February 14, 2016
APTN