Since the fall of their government in 2001, Taliban have made every possible effort to destruct Afghanistan’s national infrastructure including highways. Not only the highways are destructed but also the civilians who use them for travelling are at the great risk of falling prey to Taliban’s planted IEDs.

Islam does not allow destruction of infrastructure built to benefit the public. Nonetheless, anti-government elements continue to use these landmine-like IEDs with devastating harm to civilians and national highways of Afghanistan. This is one of the most cowardly acts by insurgents who blow the trumpet of being the soldiers of Islam.

IED or roadside bombs planted by insurgents on the main highways connected various provinces of Afghanistan have been killing both foreign and Afghan security forces and civilians. With such a situation persisting, the Taliban deny to be killing two birds with one stone. IEDs that used to be the greatest killer of foreign troops in Afghanistan are now blamed for most of civilian casualties in the country.

Planting IEDs to target foreign troops has been a deadly tactic used by insurgents. Most fatalities to coalition forces in Afghanistan have been caused by the same tactic. It has been counted as Taliban’s most working war technique against NATO.

However, in the recent years mines planted on highways of Afghanistan have resulted in the deaths of more civilians than military personnel. Despite that IEDs and other sorts of bombs are continuously used. Based on the biannual report of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) released in August, civilian casualties in Afghanistan rose by 23 percent during the first six months of the current year. UNAMA documented 1,319 civilian deaths, compared with 1,158 a year earlier.

The report attributes 74 percent of civil casualties to fighters, up by 16 percent over the same period last year. UNAMA blames use of IEDs for most of the deaths and injuries.

Security of the highways connecting Afghanistan is has been deteriorating at a very fast pace in the past few years. The government needs to wake up on this issue. It has to take serious and timely measures to tighten the security of people who travel by road between different provinces of Afghanistan.