A/HRC/7/27 page 9 equipped for such a role and are therefore more susceptible to casualties. Combat engagement by the police moreover hampers achieving the long-term goal of developing a strong, responsive civilian police force dedicated to law enforcement and points to a serious security gap that needs to be filled by alternative mechanisms. A. Attacks by anti-Government elements (AGEs) 28. AGE attacks accounted for over half the non-combatant casualties registered by UNAMA in 2007. Of particular concern are tactics that directly target Afghan civilians, in clear breach of basic norms of international humanitarian law. AGEs frequently issue threats and carry out direct attacks against civilians, including children, perceived to be cooperating with the Government and its international supporters. Regular and well-publicized hangings and beheadings of alleged “spies” in conflict areas terrorize the civilian population and create a feeling of insecurity. Consequently, in some areas of the country, fear of reprisals has notably reduced active support for the Government. 29. UNAMA monitoring shows that suicide attacks and IEDs detonated in public areas by AGEs have caused a high number of civilian casualties. While most of these attacks were directed primarily against military or government targets, many were carried out in crowded civilian areas, causing extensive civilian casualties. Such attacks are in violation of international humanitarian law if they inherently cannot discriminate between the legitimate military target and non-combatants. 30. Furthermore, the perpetrators of suicide bombings and other armed attacks tend to use perfidious or other tactics that violate international humanitarian law. They do not usually distinguish themselves from ordinary civilians, and in some cases actively use civilian guise. AGEs also violated international humanitarian law repeatedly when they carried out operations from inside civilian locations and used non-combatants as human shields. Those responsible should be held to account for such crimes. B. Operations by international and national security forces 31. Combat operations by national and international security forces have led to almost half of the non-combatant casualties recorded by UNAMA in 2007. Although Afghan national and international forces have increased efforts to minimize harm to non-combatants, there remain allegations of the use of disproportionate force in some cases, particularly in relation to defensive air strikes and force-protection incidents. Force-protection incidents are those in which military forces fire at individuals who come too close to military convoys or fail to follow instructions at checkpoints. Some AGE tactics, which constitute violations of international humanitarian law, have contributed to development of these force-protection protocols and other defensive tactics. Even if the AGE tactics are in breach of international humanitarian law, this does not absolve military forces of their own responsibility to avoid or at least minimize harm to civilians and their property. There also have been a few incidents in which serious misconduct by international and national security forces could be substantiated.