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At Least 23 Civilians Killed in Helmand Airstrike: UN Confirms
Preliminary findings from the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) indicate that as many as 23 civilians were killed and three injured in an airstrike in Garmser district of Helmand province during operations conducted by pro-government forces against Taliban in the area on Tuesday.
“Initial findings indicate that the vast majority of the victims were women and children,” UNAMA said in a statement.
The Mission is actively working to verify information indicating up to 10 children were killed along with eight women, and three children were injured, including an eight-year-old boy, the statement said.
According to the statement, the incident took place during an operation involving Afghan and international military forces, when international military forces conducted an airstrike following engagements between the forces on the ground and Taliban.
In addition, three days earlier, during fighting between Taliban and pro-government forces, three civilian homes were struck by explosive ordnance in Nad-e-Ali district of Helmand province, killing two civilians and injuring at least 14 more, including 10 children, reportedly after Taliban initiated an attack from the vicinity of civilian homes against an Afghan National Army convoy returning to its base, the UN statement noted.
“The Mission welcomes indications that relevant authorities have initiated investigations into the civilian casualty reports, and it will continue its independent enquiries to establish additional facts, sharing the findings with parties as part of advocacy efforts for improved mitigation measures in their future operations to prevent civilian casualties,” UNAMA said.
This comes as UNAMA has this year recorded a sharp increase in civilian casualties from aerial attacks in the first nine months of 2018 compared to the same period in 2017.
The 649 civilian casualties recorded between 1 January and 30 September 2018 is more than the number of civilian casualties from aerial operations recorded over every entire year since UNAMA began systematic civilian casualty documentation in 2009.
In the two incidents in Helmand province this week, UNAMA notes with particular concern that children were disproportionately impacted, comprising 55 percent of the civilian casualties.
UNAMA said that it reminds all parties to the conflict to uphold their obligations to protect civilians from harm, and holds that all parties to the conflict must strictly adhere to their obligations under international humanitarian law to take all feasible measures to protect civilians.
The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs says on the occasion of International Labor Day, the Islamic Emirate is trying to increase the number of job opportunities in the country.
The ministry said that it has distributed work permits to more than 2,000 people, including women, during the past month.
“Work permits were given to 2,115 of our compatriots over the past month, including to 205 women,” said Samiullah Ebrahimi, a spokesman for the Ministry of Public Works.
“Of course, women have been permitted to work in sectors where women are necessary and their services are for women,” he added.
Meanwhile, workers in the country complain about the lack of jobs and say that the level of unemployment has increased and workers’ wages have decreased.
Afghanistan is one of the countries that has countless child laborers, and according to reports, governments have not been able to end this practice.
“I work for 200 to 300 afghanis a day, and there are eight members in our family,” said one child laborer.
“I am 12 years old and in sixth grade. I earn 150 afghanis per day, there are seven of us and I have been working here for one and a half years,” said another child laborer.
According to UN statistics, in 2024, more than 23 million people in Afghanistan need humanitarian aid, and that most of them are unemployed.
However, the demands are that international institutions should provide work for the people of Afghanistan by implementing development projects.
The Islamic Emirate’s Miynister of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, says there is no gap between the current system and the people and that cooperation with the Islamic system is the people’s Sharia duty, the ministry said in a statement.
At a gathering in Kabul, Hanafi said: “This Islamic system is the people’s system, the people are considered part of this system, there is no gap between the system and the people. Therefore, cooperation with the Islamic system is the people’s Sharia duty.”
“It’s a very positive thing that we Afghan people do not have differences among ourselves as before, we live under the command of one leader and the flag of the Islamic system,” Hanafi stressed.
“The goal of Jihad was to end the occupation, gain independence and strengthen the Islamic system in the country,” he stated, adding that “all these goals have been achieved with the help of God and the cooperation of Afghans.”
“Now the time has come to serve and cooperate with the people to solve the problems and implement the Sharia rules of the Islamic system,” he added.
The ministry stated that in addition to providing and protecting women’s Sharia rights, thousands of complaints have been resolved so far.
The Deputy Spokesman of the US State Department says that when the interests of his country are involved, Washington will not hesitate to interact with the Islamic Emirate.
Vedant Patel said that interaction with the Islamic Emirate is not only the best way to protect the interests of America, but also to support the people of Afghanistan.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, he said interaction with the Islamic Emirate provides the basis for a direct dialogue with them.
According to Patel, this interaction is an opportunity to continue the pressure on the Islamic Emirate for the immediate and unconditional release of American citizens, including those who have been caught “unjustly”.
Patel added that the United States would also take advantage of these opportunities to talk directly with the Islamic Emirate about commitments to counter terrorism. He emphasized that Washington human rights issues are also on the agenda.
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