The Kabul times, Afghanistan Trustable News Agency.
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More than 500 Afghan civilians die due to violence in first quarter: UN

By: The Kabul Times
KABUL: More than 500 civilians were killed in Afghanistan in the first three months of the year as violence raged even after an agreement between the United States and the Taliban on withdrawing foreign forces, the United Nations said on Monday.
In all, fighting in the first three months caused 1,293 civilian casualties, of which 760 were injuries and the rest deaths, including 152 children and 60 women, the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said in a quarterly report yesterday.
The violence increased after a Feb. 29 U.S.-Taliban pact on the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign forces in exchange for Taliban security guarantees. It includes a commitment by the Taliban and the Afghan government to work towards peace.
“The report tracks a disturbing increase in violence during March at a time when it was hoped that the government of Afghanistan and the Taliban would commence peace negotiations, as well as seek ways to defuse the conflict and prioritize efforts to protect all Afghans from the impact of COVID-19,” UNAMA said.
Despite that, the number of casualties in the first three months of this year was the lowest since 2012. The period included a reduction in violence leading up to the signing of the pact.
Deborah Lyons, the U.N. secretary-general’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, reiterated calls for a ceasefire, which the Taliban have rejected in recent days.
“To safeguard the lives of countless civilians in Afghanistan and to give the nation hope of a better future, it is imperative that violence is stopped,” she said.
 
 

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The Kabul times, Afghanistan Trustable News Agency.