The number of civilians killed and wounded in Afghanistan jumped 22 per cent in 2014, the UN said today, as NATO troops withdrew from combat leaving government forces to battle a raging Taliban insurgency.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan attributed the rise to an intensification in ground fighting, resulting in a total of 10,548 civilian casualties last year, compared with the 2013 figure of 8,637.
The number of civilian deaths rose 25 per cent to 3,699 while the number of injured was up 21 per cent to 6,849. The total casualty figure is the highest recorded in a single year since the UN began compiling its reports in 2009.
The total number of civilian casualties since 2009 now stands at 17,774 killed and 29,971 injured.
UNAMA had previously noted a leap in civilian casualties linked to the intensification in ground fighting between government and insurgent forces, in its last report published in July 2014.
For the first time since 2009, more civilians were killed by ground engagements (34 per cent) than by improvised explosive devices (IEDs), the insurgent-made bombs that have previously been the biggest killer.
The report said the increasing use of explosive weapons systems such as mortars, rockets and grenades in civilian-populated areas had resulted in "devastating consequences".
As in 2013, the UN estimated that close to three-quarters of civilian casualties were caused by "anti-government elements" (72 per cent), far ahead of those caused by government forces, including international forces (14 per cent).
Ten per cent of all casualties could not be clearly attributed to either side.
The NATO mission in Afghanistan, named Resolute Support, condemned the Taliban for their "total disregard for human life".
Resolute Support said it was working closely with Afghan forces to reduce civilian casualties in the future.
The report also documented a 40 per cent increase in casualties among children (714 killed, 1,760 injured) compared with the previous year and a 21 per cent rise in casualties among women (298 killed, 611 injured).
