UN urged to add Afghan forces as a violator of child rights

A network of organizations seeking to protect children in conflict is calling on U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to add Afghan government forces to a U.N. blacklist for attacks on medical facilities and personnel that have led to the death and suffering of children.

The Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict says in a report launched Monday that Afghan forces, the Taliban and other combatants carried out more than 240 attacks on medical facilities and personnel in 2015 and 2016.

It says the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces committed at least 35 of the attacks.

The report says the attacks have damaged and destroyed facilities and led to the looting of medical supplies, stealing of ambulances and intimidation, detention and killing of medical personnel, which have severely affected children.