US Defense Secretary Makes Unannounced Trip to Afghanistan
By VOA News
16 September 2008
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has made an unannounced trip to Afghanistan, as Afghan leaders express concern about civilian casualties due to U.S.-led air strikes.
Gates arrived in Kabul Tuesday after visiting Iraq. Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell says he will meet with U.S. military commanders and Afghan President Hamid Karzai to assess efforts in the fight against the Taliban and concerns about civilian deaths.
The United Nations Tuesday said civilian casualties in August were the highest in Afghanistan, since the fall of the Taliban-led government in 2001.
In a statement, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said 330 civilians were killed last month, including 90 in a U.S.-led air strike in western Herat province.
The U.N. says more than 1,400 civilians have been killed so far this year, up nearly 40 percent from the same time period last year.
More than half of the deaths were attributed to the Taliban. In his statement, Pillay said there is substantial evidence indicating the Taliban are carrying out a systematic campaign of intimidation and violence against Afghan civilians they believe are supportive of the Afghan government and international forces.
Also Tuesday, the Afghan Interior Ministry said Taliban militants have killed 720 police officers in the last six months. More than 1,100 police were killed in all of last year.
Separately, officials say Taliban militants killed an Afghan intelligence officer, his wife and their two sons in their home in eastern Kunar province Tuesday.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
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