Senior UN official in Afghanistan condemns killing of civilian family in bomb blast
| Publisher | UN News Service |
| Publication Date | 18 January 2015 |
| Cite as | UN News Service, Senior UN official in Afghanistan condemns killing of civilian family in bomb blast, 18 January 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/54be38df4.html [accessed 28 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has today condemned the killing yesterday of a family, as well as the driver of the taxi they were travelling in when the vehicle hit a pressure-plate improvised explosive device planted on a road in the eastern province of Nangarhar.
"The use of indiscriminate, victim-activated bombs in civilian populated areas is an outrage," said the Secretary-General's Special Representative for Afghanistan and head of UNAMA, Nicholas Haysom. "The use of indiscriminate weapons must stop immediately."
The family group was composed of a husband and wife, as well as two sons and a daughter aged between 4 and 12 years-old.
Next month, UNAMA will next month release its 2014 annual report on the Protection of Civilians, including detailed reporting on civilian casualties. Improvised explosive devices were the second largest cause of civilian casualties in Afghanistan during 2014, with numbers up from 2013.
Mr. Haysom stressed that international humanitarian law explicitly prohibits the use of weapons whose effects may not be limited and attacks which are not directed at a specific military objective.
UNAMA extends its condolences to the families of all of those killed in the explosion.
