HERAT (SW) – The United Nations in Afghanistan condemned in the ‘strongest terms’ the attack today on its main compound in Herat that resulted in the loss of life of an Afghan police guard and injuries to other officers.
It said the attack targeting entrances of the clearly marked United Nations facility was carried out by Anti-Government Elements.
The area around Herat where the compound is located witnessed fighting today between the Taliban and government forces. The UN is urgently seeking to establish a full picture about the attack and for this purpose is in contact with the relevant parties, said UNAMA.
“This attack against the United Nations is deplorable and we condemn it in the strongest terms,” said Deborah Lyons, the United Nations Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan. “Our first thoughts are with the family of the officer slain and we wish a speedy recovery to those injured.”
No UN personnel was hurt in the incident, in which entrances were attacked by rocket-propelled grenades and gunfire, said the statement.
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“The perpetrators of this attack must be identified and brought to account,” said Lyons, who is also head of UNAMA.
Attacks against civilian UN personnel and compounds are prohibited under international law, and may amount to war crimes.
The United Nations in Afghanistan noted it is a civilian entity focused on supporting peace efforts, promoting the rights of all Afghans and providing humanitarian and development assistance.
The UN expresses its gratitude to the Afghan Directorate of Protection Services officers who defended the compound from the attackers, said the statement.
Local officials in the province told said that five security forces got killed and 21 others got injured in the Taliban assaults in Herat. According to the head of the regional public hospital, Arif Jalali, among the injured include three civilians and 18 security forces with bullet-wounds.
The Taliban claimed to have captured Karakh and Guzara districts in Herat.
ENDS
