Summary
This special report on the human rights situation in Kunduz province was prepared by the Human Rights Unit of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). The report received technical input from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).
The report covers the period from 28 September to 13 October 20151 and presents the preliminary findings by UNAMA regarding civilian protection concerns, potential violations of international humanitarian law and human rights violations and abuses following the Taliban’s attack and control of Kunduz city, the initial phase of the counter-offensive by pro-Government Forces and the period that ensued until Government forces regained control of the city.
The report documents harm inflicted on civilians and civilian property, and related human rights concerns. UNAMA received credible reports of 848 civilian casualties (289 deaths and 559 injured) that occurred in Kunduz city and surrounding districts between 28 September and 13 October. These figures are preliminary and may increase as UNAMA continues its efforts to verify additional civilian casualty reports with three types of sources.2 The vast majority of casualties documented so far resulted from ground fighting that could not be attributed solely to one party3 , and 67 of these casualties (30 deaths and 37 injured)4 resulted from an airstrike carried out by international military forces on a Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) hospital on 3 October.
The battle following the Taliban’s attack on the city led to a loss of protection of the most basic human rights, including the rights to life and security of person. The deterioration of security, the breakdown of the rule of law and the absence of governance enabled an environment in which civilians were subjected to arbitrary killings, assault, other forms of violence, including gender-based violence, threats and widespread criminality.
Mandate
The report is issued pursuant to the UNAMA mandate under United Nations Security Council resolution 2210 (2015) “to monitor the situation of civilians, to coordinate efforts to ensure their protection, to promote accountability and to assist in the full implementation of the fundamental freedoms and human rights provisions of the Afghan Constitution and international treaties to which Afghanistan is a State party, in particular those regarding the full enjoyment by women of their human rights.”
Resolution 2210 recognizes the importance of ongoing monitoring and reporting to the Security Council on the situation of civilians in the armed conflict, particularly on civilian casualties. UNAMA undertakes a range of activities aimed at minimizing the impact of the armed conflict on civilians including: independent and impartial monitoring of incidents involving loss of life or injury to civilians; advocacy with all parties to the conflict to strengthen protection of civilians affected by the armed conflict; and initiatives to promote compliance with international humanitarian and human rights law, and the Constitution and laws of Afghanistan.
Methodology
The findings of this report are based upon 326 interviews conducted by UNAMA human rights staff, between 28 September and 1 December 2015, with residents of Kunduz city and civilians displaced to other locations in Afghanistan, including Mazar-e-Sharif city (Balkh province), Taloqan city (Takhar province), Faizabad city (Badakhshan province) and Kabul city.
UNAMA carried out 136 face-to-face interviews with victims and witnesses displaced from Kunduz. It also conducted over 190 telephone interviews, with victims, witnesses and other directly involved persons including medical practitioners, community leaders, Government officials and other interlocutors. The findings set out in this report are primarily based on the credible and consistent accounts provided by these multiple and varied sources. Due to insecurity and the relocation of all staff from the UNAMA office in Kunduz, human rights officers could not conduct investigations in Kunduz city.
In addition to gathering information from primary sources on specific incidents, UNAMA obtained data from hospitals and other medical facilities. The Department of Public Health in Kunduz provided UNAMA with figures of injured civilians treated in its facilities (as well as the number of dead civilians it received) up to 3 October, after which all major health facilities in Kunduz city ceased functioning5 or stopped recording civilian casualty figures due to limited staffing6 and the high volume of patients. UNAMA obtained additional information from the Department of Health in Kunduz province after they resumed normal operations. UNAMA also obtained data on injured civilians treated in the MSF hospital before it was hit by an airstrike on 3 October.
UNAMA also obtained data on injured civilians from Kunduz treated in Department of Public Health hospitals in Taloqan (Takhar province), Pul-i-Khumri (Baghlan province), and Mazar-e-Sharif (Balkh province). Whilst the Department of Public Health categorized its figures as representing “civilian casualties”, UNAMA has not yet been able to fully verify the status of each of the reported victims.