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UN Officials Urge Protection for Civilians in Afghanistan
UN officials on Monday urged protection for civilians as well as aid workers in Afghanistan trying to provide relief to the country's destitute and suffering people.
"With the missile strikes, the increasing lack of security in some Afghan cities, and the breakdown in law and order in some areas, UN Afghanistan appeals for all parties to respect the rights of civilians," a U.N. spokesman told reporters in New York.
He stressed the need to protect civilians and aid workers from attacks, harassment, threats and looting by elements within Afghanistan itself.
"The task ahead of the aid community is already daunting enough, and the aid effort is nowhere close to where it needs to be to save lives in what is now the most serious complex emergency in the world�� ever," the spokesman said.
A spokesman for the World Food Program echoed this call, urging all parties "to do their very best to respect humanitarian workers and their premises and their need for security in carrying out their work."
He reported that this morning a bomb had exploded near a WFP warehouse in Afsotar on the northern edge of Kabul, injuring one casual laborer who was not seriously wounded. "WFP regrets this unfortunate incident and will follow up to ensure that the individual who was injured receives proper medical attention," he said.
Eric Laroche, an official with the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF), warned that Afghan children face life-threatening risks as winter approaches.
"As many as 100 ��000 more children will die this winter inside Afghanistan if aid does not reach them in sufficient quantities in the next few weeks," he said.
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