Violence in Afghanistan has not abated, resulting in more civilian deaths for the first five months of the year compared to the same period in 2008, according to the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, who is expecting an escalation of violence.

In his report, "The Situation in Afghanistan and its Implication for International Peace and Security", Ban said the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan recorded 800 civilian casualties mostly in the eastern, southern, southeastern parts of the country.

Armed conflict between insurgents, U.S. troops, the International Security Assistance Force and government forces have resulted in a 24 percent increase in civilian deaths.

A little over half of these deaths, or 55 percent, were attributed to insurgents. Another 33 percent were said to be due to international and Afghan forces while 12 percent could not be pinned on any of these parties.

Insecurity in Afghanistan has reemerged in certain regions of the country since the fall of the Taliban in 2001. The U.N. noted more than 1,000 violent incidents just in May 2009.

Reuters reported that during the weekend alone, one child and nine people were wounded in a suicide bombing, five policemen were killed in an attack by insurgents, and another two police officers were killed and two wounded in an ambush.

Security incidents involving nonprofit organizations, including the kidnapping and killing of aid workers, numbered 60 from January to June 15 of this year.

Violence is expected to further intensify due to the presidential and provincial council elections in August.

"The next period will likely experience an increase in the level of violence compared with the same period last year, including complex suicide attacks, intimidation and assassinations carried out by insurgents," the U.N. warned in the report.

U.S. Marines to be deployed in Helmand, heartland of the Taliban, vowed to use less firepower in their counterinsurgency campaign, having learned bitter lessons in Iraq.

"We learned that we can't just go around kicking down doors because that won't work. In Iraq, what really helped us win over there, make the situation better, was gaining the trust of the people, becoming friends with them," said a 21-year-old corporal who spent months in Anbar, west of Baghdad.

At an informal meeting of G8 foreign ministers in Trieste, Italy, on Friday, Ban stressed that drug trafficking, organized crime and terrorism exacerbate violence in Afghanistan.

"These ills bring violence into the lives of everyday Afghans," he said. "There can be little question that we have a shared responsibility to deal with these threats."

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