28/3/2003
Attacks Against Schools In Afghanistan

As the new Afghan school year gets under way schools in various parts of the country have come under attack. Many of these schools provide education for girls. The senior United Nations envoy to Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, this week deplored these attacks and called on Afghans to unite against vandalism.

Speaking at a ceremony held over the weekend to launch the beginning of the 1382 Afghan school year, Mr Brahimi said that the attacks against mostly girls' schools were "unacceptable." President Hamid Karzai and other senior Afghan officials also attended the ceremony held at Amani High School.

"Neither the religion of Afghanistan, nor the culture, nor any tradition and certainly not the tradition of jihad, allow something like this to happen," Mr. Brahimi said of the attacks carried out last year. He also said those who engaged in the vandalism were enemies of the people, religion and culture of Afghanistan. He added that the UN was doing its best to help the girls and boys in Afghanistan to have access to education and expressed the hope that more would be done by all involved.