UN Security Council condemns alarming attacks on civilians in Afghanistan
Mar 13, 2021
Kabul [Afghanistan], March 13 : The United Nations Security Council has condemned the alarming number of attacks deliberately targeting civilians in Afghanistan and called for an immediate end to these attacks and stressed for the urgent need to bring the perpetrators to justice.
In a statement released, the council said that these heinous attacks have targeted civil servants, the judiciary, the media, health-care and humanitarian workers, including women in prominent positions, those who protect and promote human rights, and ethnic and religious minorities.
"The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims, and they wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured," the Security Council said in a statement issued on Friday by Council President Linda Thomas-Greenfield (United States).
The members of the Security Council expressed their deep concern regarding the increase of these targeted attacks in the months following the start of the Afghanistan peace negotiations on 12 September 2020.
"The members of the Security Council recognized that a sustainable peace can be achieved only through a comprehensive and inclusive Afghan-led, Afghan-owned peace process that aims at a permanent and comprehensive ceasefire, as well as an inclusive political settlement to end the conflict in Afghanistan," the statement read.
They stressed the need for full, equal and meaningful participation of women in this regard. The members of the Security Council strongly encouraged parties to the negotiations to pursue confidence-building measures, including reductions in violence, and to continue to engage in good faith.
"The members of the Security Council called for an immediate end to these targeted attacks and stressed the urgent and imperative need to bring the perpetrators to justice. The members of the Security Council recalled that all parties must respect their obligations under international humanitarian law in all circumstances, including those related to the protection of civilians."
Last February, the Taliban and the Afghan government reached a landmark US-brokered agreement, paving the way for peace talks, which began in the Qatari capital of Doha on September 12.
The intra-Afghan talks have so far failed to put an end to the confrontation on the ground. On the contrary, Afghanistan has witnessed a spate of bomb attacks and clashes in recent months, with the military continuing to regularly conduct operations against Taliban operatives.
