UN strongly condemns twin suicide attacks in Kabul

UNITED NATIONS: Strongly condemning two terrorist attacks in Kabul, the United Nations mission in Afghanistan underscored the need to bring those behind the attacks to justice.

According to reports, at least 14 civilians were killed and over 30 injured in the two attacks that took place Monday morning (local time) in a heavily populated neighbourhood in central Kabul. The second attack was timed 30 minutes later to target journalists arriving on the scene and emergency services personnel seeking to provide aid to victims of the first attack.

There is no justification whatsoever for such attacks, those who have organized and enabled these attacks must be brought to justice and held to account. Tadamichi Yamamoto, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan and the head of the UN Assistance Mission in the country (UNAMA), said in a statement.

"I am outraged by the attack which appears to have deliberately targeted journalists; this attack, coming just ahead of World Press Freedom Day, is a direct assault on freedom of expression, he said.

In the statement, Yamamoto also reiterated the protections accorded to civilians under international humanitarian law and called on all parties to uphold their obligations, at all times.

These attacks caused untold human suffering to Afghan families, he said, extending condolences to the families of the victims and a speedy recovery to the injured.