Coalition Forces Are Killing More Civilians Than The Taliban

A new report from the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has found that high numbers of civilians are continuing to die in the conflict between U.S. and Afghan forces and anti-government elements. From 1 January to 31 March 2019, UNAMA documented 1,773 civilian casualties - 581 deaths and 1,192 injuries.

Worryingly, the figures show that U.S. and Afghan forces killed more civilians in the first quarter of the year than the Taliban and other armed groups. Between the beginning of the year and the end of March, 305 civilian deaths were caused by pro-government forces while 227 were attributed to anti-government elements. A further 49 occured in other situations such as crossfires.