Afghan civilians dying in record numbers: UN
Updated
The United Nations has delivered a grim report showing that civilian casualties in Afghanistan are worse than ever.
The UN says a total of 1,462 civilians were killed in the first six months of this year, a 15 per cent increase on the same time last year and the highest figure in the war so far.
More than 80 per cent of them were killed by insurgents and 18 per cent by Afghan and Coalition forces.
The UN also revealed it has been in contact with the Taliban in an effort to reduce the bloodshed.
UN special representative in Afghanistan Staffan de Mistura has condemned the violence and called on all sides to respect the lives of civilians.
"These are not just figures, these are names, these are people, these are men, women, elder people, children. These are Afghan people," he said.
The report shows that homemade bombs, known as improvised explosive devices (IEDs), are the most devastating weapon in the conflict.
Afghanistan's Independent Human Rights Commission says the numbers published by the United Nations do not represent the real cost of the war because the injured, bereaved and traumatised are not counted.
"These numbers are not demonstrating the real suffering that the population are going through. It's not just the body count," commissioner Nader Nadery said.
Meanwhile Afghan president Hamid Karzai has ordered an inquiry into claims that six civilians were killed in a NATO raid in the eastern province of Khost.
The local provincial council has gone on strike to express its outrage at the deaths.
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