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Last decade marks over 80,000 civilian casualties, Afghanistan
The latest statistics by the Independent Human Rights Commission shows that over 80,000 civilian, either killed or wounded, in the last decade in Afghanistan.
The IHR’s annual report, unveiled Tuesday, February 4, says that though the violence graph has reduced by a margin of 45%, compared to 2018, between 2009 and late 2019, around 28,979 civilians have been killed, and 57,844 others have been injured.
The report also indicates that 70,597 people were domestically displaced due to the war.
The IHRC’s findings suggest that the main cause of the civilian casualties are the insurgent groups - the Taliban and the ISIS - and partially, the National Security Forces are responsible as well.
The report categorizes the subjects of the casualties as follows:
- The Taliban: 71%
- National forces: 14%
- ISIS: 5%
- Other (unknown forces): 9%
Naeem Nazari, the deputy of the IHRC said, “We just witnessed a reduction in violence, which may probably be as a result of the peace talks. Another main factor could be that the elimination of the ISIS in eastern Afghanistan.”
Based on the report, men have suffered most of the casualties, while children and women are also included in the census.
On the other hand, the Ministry of Defense denies the allegation of its involvement in the civilian casualties.
Fawad Aman, the deputy spokesperson of the MoD, considers the Taliban accountable for most of the civilian casualties.
The IHRC also breaks down the report on a geographical basis as below:
- Southeastern Zone: 32% (3,453 killed, wounded)
- Eastern Zone: 21%
- Central Zone: 20%
- Northern Zone: 6%
- Southern Zone 4%
Despite the 45% reduction in violence, 2019 was still a fatal year for the civilians.
Eleven people have been killed in a shooting at a shrine in Afghanistan’s northern Baghlan province, local sources said on Friday.
The incident took place at 9 pm on Thursday at the shrine of Sayed Padsha Jan in Shahr-e-Kuhna of Nahrin district.
A local resident said the dead were residents of Nahrin district and wanted to spend the night at the shrine.
Asadullah Mustafa Hashemi, the provincial information and culture director, confirmed the incident but did not provide details on how it happened or the number of casualties.
Provincial police spokesman said they had not received any information about the incident yet.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Serdar Muhammetdurdiyev on Thursday met with Chinese special envoy for Afghanistan, Yue Xiaoyong, the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan announced.
During the meeting, the sides discussed priority vectors of strategic interstate cooperation built on a long-term, mutually beneficial basis, as well as exchanged views on the implementation of previously reached agreements.
It was noted that personal contacts between the leaders of the two countries play a key role in intensifying the interstate dialogue, which give a strong impulse to further development and expansion of Turkmen-Chinese ties.
It was emphasized that Turkmenistan considers multilateral international platforms for maintaining stability in Afghanistan as an important factor in promoting sustainable improvement of socio-economic state of the neighboring country. The sides exchanged views on the preparations to the 5th meeting of Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan's Neighboring States to be held in Turkmenistan.
The interlocutors reaffirmed that Turkmenistan and China will continue to provide all-round support for the economic restoration of Afghanistan.
The U.S. House Of Representatives has passed a legislation on evacuation of Afghans who assisted Americans during the 20-year war in Afghanistan.
“The passage of the CARE Authorization Act of 2024 further underscores the commitment made by the U.S. government to safeguard those who served shoulder-to-shoulder with our personnel during the twenty-year mission in Afghanistan,” Congresswoman Dina Titus said in a statement.
“The State Department has made it clear: There is no deadline for the crucial job of protecting Afghan allies. By authorizing the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts at the State Department, we can more effectively relocate and resettle those who have qualified to immigrate to the U.S. as a result of their service to this country.”
In 2022 the State Department established a specialized office called the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts (CARE) to streamline and coordinate the ongoing relocation and resettlement process for eligible Afghans from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the United States.
The CARE Authorization Act of 2024 will formally authorize the CARE office at the State Department for three years and grant important authorities to advance its mission. These include an extension of authorities to enter into personal services contracts as well as measures to streamline the transfer of funds to and from other agencies involved in the Afghan relocation mission.
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