UN pulls staff from Kandahar

[doonbugie]

[QUOTE]
The United Nations said Monday it was pulling some foreign workers out of Kandahar, amid a wave of violence in the Afghan city.
The UN insisted the move of the personnel to Kabul was only temporary. The UN also told more than 200 Afghan staff to stay home.
UN spokesman Dan McNorton said the organization is still committed to offering humanitarian assistance in Kandahar.
McNorton would not say how many non-Afghan staff have been moved to Kabul.
"There is always a balance to be struck to ensure the safety of our staff and ensure that we can deliver our programs and humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan," McNorton said. "We constantly have to adapt our ways of working."
"We will continue to monitor the security situation in Kandahar and hope to be able to get back to work as soon as possible," he added.
The move came as three explosions hit the city, killing two civilians.
The first two blasts occurred within a minute of each other in downtown Kandahar. The bombs were planted about 10 metres apart and apparently aimed at a passing convoy of deputy provincial police chief Fazel Ahmad Sherzad.
"They were targeting the car I normally use, but luckily I was not in it at the time," Sherzad said.
The third blast went off about two hours later north of the city.
Kandahar has seen a rise in violence recently as U.S. forces gear up for a push to clear insurgents out of the city, which was the birthplace of the Taliban. The U.S. offensive is planned for the summer.
The deteriorating situation, which has seen at least 20 people die in attacks since April 12, has left residents worried.
"The security in this city is deteriorating," said 43-year-old rickshaw driver Enayutullah Khan. "People leave their homes only to find food for their children. Otherwise we don't leave the house."

[/QUOTE]

In other news, Suicide bombers target UN..

Read more: [URL]http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/04/26/afghanistan-kandahar-un-pullout.html#ixzz0mHhmI5cd[/URL]