Statement from the Humanitarian Coordinator, Mark Bowden - Abducted aid workers killed in Afghanistan

Kabul, 11 April 2015: Reacting to the announcement by Save the Children International that five members of their national staff, who were abducted on 3 March in Uruzgan province, were found dead on 10 April, Mark Bowden, the Humanitarian Coordinator, has made the following statement:

"I am deeply saddened by this shocking news. I share the grief of our colleagues at Save the Children International and the families of those killed.

Afghanistan is one of the most challenging places for the humanitarian community with death, kidnappings and attacks against humanitarians all too frequent an occurrence. In 2014, 57 aid workers were killed in Afghanistan.

Aid workers in Afghanistan provide emergency trauma care, run feeding programmes for malnourished children, assist people displaced from conflict and natural disasters, and support the most vulnerable wherever there is need. Attacks against aid workers lessen their ability to carry out these essential activities.

I call on all parties to ensure that those providing humanitarian assistance have safe access to people in need are can carry out their life-saving work unhindered”. For further information, please contact:

Roxanna Shapour, Public Information Officer
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA)
Shapour@un.org
+93 79 300 1110