The UN mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA) report released on October 27, said that the overall civilian casualty figure for the first nine months of 2020 dropped by around 30 per cent compared to the same period in 2019, but while the number of civilian casualties is lowest in the first nine months of any year since 2012, “the harm done to civilians remains inordinate and shocking”, reports Tolo News. UNAMA documented that Anti-Government Elements (AGEs) remain responsible for the majority of civilian casualties (58 per cent). Compared to the same period in 2019, the amount of civilian deaths attributed to AGEs remained at similar levels, although there was a decrease. The report said that the number of civilians killed attributed to the Taliban increased by six per cent in the first nine months of 2020, adding that the overall number of civilian casualties, killed and injured, attributed to the Taliban dropped by 32 per cent, mainly due to a reduction in the number of civilians injured by suicide attacks and ground engagements, though this was partially offset by an increased number of civilian casualties from targeted killings and illegal, indiscriminate pressure-plate Improvised Explosives Devices (IEDs).