The number of civilians killed and injured in the Afghan conflict during the first three months of 2021 has increased by 29 percent, reaching 1,783 casualties, compared to the same period last year, a new report by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said on Wednesday
UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th April, 2021) The number of civilians killed and injured in the Afghan conflict during the first three months of 2021 has increased by 29 percent, reaching 1,783 casualties, compared to the same period last year, a new report by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said on Wednesday."Between January 1 and March 31 2021, UNAMA documented 1,783 civilian casualties (573 killed and 1,210 injured)," the report said. "The number of civilians killed and injured increased by 29 percent compared with the first quarter of 2020."
The report noted that of specific concern is a 38 percent increase in casualties among civilians in the six months after the start of the intra-Afghan peace negotiations in September 2020 in Doha.
"The current talks have not resulted in reducing the scale of harm to civilians," the report stated.
In addition, during the reported period, Afghanistan saw a 37 percent increase in the number of women killed and injured and a 23 percent increase in child casualties, compared to the first quarter of 2020.
The increase in civilian casualties was mainly driven by ground engagements, improvised explosive devices and targeted killings, the report said.
Anti-government elements were responsible for the majority - 61 percent - of all civilian casualties, while pro-government forces caused 27 percent of the total civilian casualties, according to the report.
On Tuesday, the administration of President Joe Biden confirmed the United States would withdraw all American forces from Afghanistan by September 11, after nearly 20 years of deployment.
