Afghanistan civilian casualties hit record high: United Nations

KABUL: Civilian casualties in Afghanistan hit a record high this year, a UN report said, highlighting worsening violence as US-led troops leave after more than a decade of fighting the Taliban.

Casualties jumped 19 per cent by the end of November compared to the year before, with 3,188 civilians killed and 6,429 injured, the United Nation's Mission's for Afghanistan (UNAMA) said in a report.

It warned that civilian casualties were expected to exceed 10,000 by the end of the year, making it the deadliest year for noncombatants since the organisation began issuing its authoritative reports in 2009.

Compared to 2013, this year also saw a 33 per cent rise in casualties among children and a 12 per cent increase among women, according to the report released yesterday.

"Civilian casualties are particularly tragic and very prominent part, even benchmark, of the horror of the violence that ordinary Afghans face," said Nicholas Haysom, the top UN envoy in Afghanistan.

While ground fighting between troops and insurgent groups and Improvised explosive devices (IEDs) remained leading causes of deaths and injuries, the Taliban were accountable for 75 per cent of all civilian casualties, the report said.

As US-led NATO troops prepare to wrap up its 13-year combat mission, casualties among Afghan security forces have also suffered soaring casualties, with more than 4,600 killed in the first 10 months of this year.

After NATO's combat operations end on December 31, a follow-up mission of about 12,500 US-led NATO troops will stay on in Afghanistan to train and support the local security forces now responsible for fighting the Taliban.