Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict—a New York-based coalition aimed at ending violations against children in armed conflict zones — announced that Taleban and other parties involved in the conflict in Afghanistan have forced health facilities to permanently or temporarily close. Watchlist’s latest report, which focused on 2015 and 2016, detailed how medical facilities were temporarily or permanently closed, damaged or destroyed facilities, looted medical supplies, stolen ambulances, and threatened, intimidated and killed medical personnel. “Targeted attacks on medical facilities have decimated Afghanistan’s fragile health system, preventing many civilians from accessing life saving care,” said Christine Monaghan, research officer at Watchlist who travelled to Afghanistan in November 2016 and wrote the report. “Children suffer as a result — we are seeing more deaths, injuries and the spread of disease.” Watchlist urged the UN to call out Afghan government forces, in addition to Taleban and other insurgent groups, for targeting medical facilities. The report further called on all parties involved in the conflicts to immediately stop attacks on medical facilities and personnel, which are protected during times of conflict under international humanitarian and human rights laws. Earlier the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan documented 119 conflict-related incidents targeting or impacting medical facilities and personnel. While the majority of incidents (95) were attributed to armed opposition groups, 23 were attributed to the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces.
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