Afghan civilian casualties rise in 2009: UN

KABUL, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has recorded over 2,400 civilian deaths in the militancy-ridden Afghanistan in 2009, said a press release issued by the world body's office here Wednesday.

"The UN mission recorded 2,412 civilian casualties during 2009,up by 14 percent from 2008, when the mission recorded 2,118 civilian deaths," said the press release.

The UNAMA in the press release attributed 67 percent of the fatalities to Taliban-linked militants.

"last year, 1,630 (67 percent) were attributed to anti-government elements while 596 (25 percent) attributed to pro-government forces which includes Afghan and the NATO-led troops," said the release.

It added that the remaining eight percent casualties had taken place due to other incidents.