What Did Pete Buttgieg Just Say About Adopting Non-White Kids?
Two Former CNN Hosts Interviewed Each Other on a Podcast. What They Discussed...
Trump Wanted Proof to Vote—A Judge Had Other Plans
This State Is Paving the Road With Ambiguity to Effectively Legalize Infanticide
Vance's Vatican Visit Brings Nonviable Reporting, and More 'Fatherly' Evidence From Abrego...
Woke Prosecutor Under Fire for Who She Went After and Who She DIDN'T
State Department ‘Target-Rich’ for Cuts, WH Deputy Press Secretary Says
For Real?! Tim Walz Is Still Going After Elon Musk, Donald Trump
While Congressional Democrats Were In El Salvador, Bernie Moreno Went to Israel
Judge Rules Against Trump Administration Withholding Funds Over DEI
With Durbin Not Running for Reelection, Is This Top Democrat Next to Retire?
It Sure Looks Like the DNC May Have Had Enough of David Hogg's...
California Ready for Red Wave, Steve Hilton Says
Jasmine Crockett's Appearance on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' Leaves Us With More Questions Than...
Excellent: Youngkin, Virginia Just Made a Great Move for Kids in Schools
Tipsheet

Afghanistan Suffers Record Number of Civilian Casualties With Disturbing Number Of Child Victims

A few weeks after President Obama announced the United States would keep over 8,000 troops in Afghanistan, more than originally planned, due to unstable conditions in the region and the Taliban’s unrelenting violence, the United Nations is reporting that a record number of civilians have been killed or injured since January 2016.

Advertisement

The Human Rights branch of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan found that between January 1 and June 30, 2016, Afghanistan suffered 5,166 civilian casualties. This includes 1,601 dead and 3,565 injured. This number is the highest toll since 2009.

“This report once again lays bare the suffering inflicted on civilians by parties to the conflict in Afghanistan and shows how the conflict deprives them of basic human rights protection, displacing Afghans within their own country and forcing many to seek refuge abroad,” Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, is quoted as saying.

Among all the grim numbers, here is perhaps the most horrific: UNAMA recorded 1,509 child casualties in the six-month period. In other words, children accounted for one in three of all victims. This is an 18 percent increase in comparison to the statistics a year ago.

Three times more children than women were killed or maimed, with UMAMA documenting 507 women casualties.

Since January 2009, over 20,000 Afghan civilians have died and more than 40,000 were injured.

As if these statistics didn’t seem bad enough, the UN notes that it has “almost certainly underestimated” the “conservative” estimates of casualties.

The UN report determined that about 60 percent of the casualties were caused by “anti-government elements” such as the Taliban, ISIS, and other terror groups. “Pro-government forces,” or the country’s official security forces, accounted for another 23 percent of the deaths.

Advertisement

How could so many innocent bystanders die in the crossfire? The UN reported that a variety of factors result in civilian deaths, including suicide bombs and improvised explosive devices. An article on the UN’s news page explained why Afghan children are often killed or injured:

“Explosive remnants of war disproportionately impacted children who comprised 85 per cent of the casualties caused by such devices. The report contains several accounts of children killed or maimed while playing with such objects.”

A top UN official had strong words for all parties involved in the Afghan conflict, writing the report “represents a failure of commitment and should be a call to action … to reduce civilian suffering and increase protection.”

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Recommended

Trending on Townhall Videos

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement