Afghan civilian casualties top 11,000 to hit record in 2015

Kabul, February 14

The number of civilians killed or wounded in Afghanistan in 2015 was the highest recorded since 2009, the UN said in a new report today, with children paying a particularly heavy price.

There were 11,002 civilian casualties in 2015, including 3,545 deaths, the UN said in its annual report on civilians in armed conflict, a four per cent rise over the previous high in 2014.

"The harm done to civilians is totally unacceptable," said Nicholas Haysom, the UN's special representative for Afghanistan.

"We call on those inflicting this pain on the people of Afghanistan to take concrete action to protect civilians and put a stop to the killing and maiming."

Fighting and attacks in populated areas and major cities were described as the main causes of civilian deaths in 2015, underscoring a push by Taliban militants into urban centres "with a high likelihood of causing civilian harm", the report stated.

The UN began compiling the annual report in 2009.

Including Taliban-claimed attacks, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan assigned responsibility for 62 per cent of total civilian casualties in 2015 to anti-government elements.

But the report also noted a surge in casualties caused by pro-government forces, including the Afghan army and international troops.

Seventeen per cent of all casualties in 2015 were caused by such forces -- a 28 per cent increase over 2014 -- the report said. It was not possible to say which side caused the remaining 21 per cent of casualties.

The report criticised Afghan forces in particular for their reliance on explosives in populated areas.

"Why did they fire this rocket? Why was it necessary?" the father of a man killed in shelling in a village in Wardak province in December was quoted as saying in the report.

Nine people died in that attack, according to the report, highlighting the dangers to civilians during ground engagements.

"Can you imagine how difficult it is when your son is lying in his own blood and you are crying for him?" the father asks in the report.

One in every four casualties was a child, with the report documenting a 14 per cent increase in child casualties over the year. — AFP