{UN says children and women paying a heavy price in the war-torn country amid a surge in attacks by armed groups.}<\/p>\n
The number of Afghan civilians killed and wounded surpassed 11,000 in 2015 – the highest number recorded since the US-led invasion more than 14 years ago. <\/p>\n
The United Nations said in its annual report released on Sunday there were 3,545 civilian fatalities and 7,457 people wounded with children paying a particularly heavy toll, as Afghan security forces faced a surge in attacks by the Taliban and other armed groups. <\/p>\n
The total of 11,002 civilian casualties marked a four percent rise over 2014, the previous record high, the report said.<\/p>\n
One-in-four casualties was a child, while one-in-10 was female, it said, with the UN’s special representative for Afghanistan Nicholas Haysom calling the figures “unacceptable”.<\/p>\n
“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 of civilians in 2016,” said Haysom. <\/p>\n
The report said “anti-government elements” were responsible for the most harm, causing 62 percent of all civilian casaulties. Those killed and wounded by “pro-government forces” represented 17 percent of the record figure.<\/p>\n
“Unprecedented numbers of children were needlessly killed and injured last year,” said Danielle Bell, the UN’s director of human rights in Afghanistan. “Other children suffered the loss of parents … one in 10 casualties was a women.”<\/p>\n
The report said residents in northern and southern Afghanistan were particularly vulnerable as the Taliban and other armed groups intensified assaults on government installations and foreign forces. <\/p>\n
Violence has increased since the drawdown of US and NATO forces over the past few years, as the Afghan army and police struggle against a surge in attacks by anti-government fighters.<\/p>\n
An estimated 59,000 civilian casualities have been recorded since the United Nations began tracking the total in 2009.<\/p>\n
Source:Al Jazeera:[Afghan civilian casualties hit a record 11,000 in 2015->http:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/news\/2016\/02\/afghan-civilian-casualties-hit-record-11000-2015-160214071436972.html]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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