Afghanistan Times
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By Farhad Naibkhel-KABUL: The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Wednesday expressed deepest concerns over little support for civilian victims in Afghanistan.
Speaking at start of National Study over war victims by Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) here, Danial Bell the human right office’s head in the UNAMA said that “Since July 1st 2009 UNAMA has documented 77,000 civilian casualties, which include victims of attacks against hospitals, intentional killing, and attack in schools, mosques and communities.
She said that despite high casualties there has been limited accountability for perpetrators and very little support for victims.
She said that we are pleased to support the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission in the initiative of running national investigation about war victims.
The national study is a timely study particularly due to changing the dynamic of the conflict with new tactics emerging and new targets practicing that are having devastated impact on civilians, she added.
Coming up with an example called improvised explosive device tactics and suicide bomber have suffered more civilians.
She said that UNAMA is extremely concerned about deliberately attacks, which target persons belonging to certain religious and ethnic communities, by groups and fighters associated as Daesh.
This study is so important because of the rights of victims should respected and the live of victims must be protected in arm territory, she noted.
She insisted that UNAMA will support and cooperate with human rights commission in the aspect of this national study regarding war victims in Afghanistan.
Sima Sammar, head of the human rights commission said that body began a national study over war victims in order to provide a guideline for all involved conflict parties to protect civilians.
She said that accordance to conventions of Geneva war law has been specified, any armed groups has no the right to attack public and welfare institutions including school, mosque, clinics, markets, houses and other private or social properties.
She said that similar killing and harassment of innocent civilians particularly women and children, patients, wounded and surrendered people are banned in the conventions.
She said that violation of above mentioned points will be war crime and crime against humanitarian, thus it should be prosecuted and the perpetrators must be brought before justice.
Also there now law to compensate war victims in Afghanistan, there should be a law to compensate suffered people in conflict areas, she underlined.
