Rights groups concerned by new Afghan casualties

Rights groups have expressed concern about the killing of civilians during Afghan and US-led coalition operations targeting insurgents in the country's restive southern and eastern regions. More than 20 civilians have been killed or wounded during counterinsurgency operations this week in southern and eastern Afghanistan, according to local news outlets. "We have repeatedly asked the Afghan and US-led coalition forces to avoid civilian casualties during military operations but regrettably innocent local people are still being killed and wounded," Ahmad Fahim Hakim, deputy head of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), said on Apr. 19. Taliban and al-Qaida militants have been waging an insurgency since the Taliban were toppled by a US-led offensive in late 2001. AIHRC wants the government and US-led coalition forces to work more closely together and act on more accurate information on targets. Sometimes suspected militant bases are attacked on the basis of unreliable information–resulting in civilians uninvolved in the conflict suffering death and injury. Other say such "collateral damage" could contribute to the insurgency by turning angry local people to the rebels. "Civilian casualties during military operations will further fuel insurgency and instability in the country," Aziz Rafee, director of the Afghan Civil Society Forum in Kabul, said. The US military has announced an investigation into an air strike in the eastern province of Kunar on Apr. 15 that killed seven civilians and wounded three. US soldiers shot at a car on Apr. 17 in the eastern province of Khost, wounding three women and a newborn baby returning from a hospital, according to district officials. A man and a seven-year-old boy were also wounded that day in a shooting by US soldiers on the edge of the same province, according to Mohammad Ayoub, chief of the provincial police. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has also ordered an investigation into the Kunar killings, calling on his forces to ensure the safety of ordinary people whilst battling insurgents. "The killing of civilians is unacceptable and should not be allowed to happen again," Karim Rahimi, presidential spokesman, told reporters . The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) echoed these concerns: "Any loss of life is regrettable and this is an issue of concern for us here at UNAMA and it is obviously something we will be raising with the proper authorities," said Aleem Siddique, senior media relations officer at UNAMA. Insecurity remains a key issue in post-Taliban Afghanistan. Despite the deployment of thousands of US and NATO forces, around 1,700 people died in conflict-related violence in 2005 alone.