Aid agency says troop surge puts civilians at risk

The United Nations says 2118 civilians died in the Afghan conflict in 2008, a 40 per cent jump over 2007. Photo / AP

KABUL - Civilians will bear the brunt of an escalation in the Afghan war this year as thousands more United States troops deploy unless more is done by Nato forces and Taleban militants to protect them, a top Red Cross official says.

Civilian casualties in Afghanistan were "significantly higher" today than a year ago, and an intensification of the conflict this year could mean that consequences for many more Afghans would be "dire in the extreme", said Pierre Krahenbuhl, the director of operations for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

"The daily lives of people living in areas where the fighting is taking place are being disrupted, be it because of airstrikes, night raids, suicide attacks, the use of IEDs, or because of intimidation and the population being pressurised or co-opted by the different parties to this conflict," he said.

The United Nations last month said 2118 civilians died in the Afghan conflict in 2008, a 40 per cent jump over 2007. It said insurgent attacks caused 55 per cent of those deaths, while US, Nato or government forces caused 39 per cent of the deaths. The remaining 6 per cent were caused in crossfire.

The Nato-led force said that an operation in Helmand province on February 23 killed eight civilians. A joint Nato-Afghan investigation found that militants used civilian houses and religious facilities for "terrorist activities" in Sangin district when they ambushed a Nato patrol. "Regretfully, as a result of this engagement eight people were killed and 17 people were injured. There were also casualties inflicted on the enemy," a statement said.

Krahenbuhl met with General David McKiernan, commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, and Major General Jeffrey Schloesser, commander of US forces in eastern Afghanistan, over the issue of civilian casualties.

Krahenbuhl said he emphasised to US commanders the "constant obligation" to distinguish between "those participating in hostilities and those who do not". Both US generals were receptive to his concerns, he said.

Krahenbuhl also met with Taleban representatives during his six-day visit and told them of the "severe impact" that suicide attacks, roadside bombs and rocket attacks have on civilians.

Taleban attacks have intensified in the last three years, and militants now control wide swathes of countryside where there aren't enough Nato or Afghan forces to maintain security. President Barack Obama announced last month he was sending 17,000 additional US troops to bolster the 38,000 already in the country.

"Unless more is done in different ways by the different parties to the conflict ... to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law, the ICRC fears that the Afghan population will bear the brunt of the announced escalation and that consequences for many will be dire in the extreme," Krahenbuhl said.

- AP