Afghan officials and Taliban authorities accused Pakistan of carrying out an airstrike on a Kabul drug rehabilitation hospital late Monday that they say killed at least 400 people and wounded hundreds. They said the strike hit the 2,000-bed facility at about 9 p.m. local time (1630 GMT), causing extensive damage and many casualties.
The Taliban deputy government spokesperson, Hamdullah Fitrat, posted on X saying the attack killed at least 400 people and left hundreds injured, adding that ‘rescue teams are currently at the scene working to control the fire and recover the remaining bodies of the victims.’
Pakistan denied targeting civilian infrastructure, saying its armed forces carried out ‘precision airstrikes’ aimed at military installations and terrorist support infrastructure in Kabul and eastern Nangarhar province, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s spokesman, Mosharraf Zaidi, also rejected the allegation that a hospital was hit.
Over the weekend both sides exchanged competing claims. Pakistan said it struck a ‘technical support infrastructure’ in Kandahar province, while Taliban authorities said the blows hit a drug treatment facility and a fuel depot belonging to a private airline. AFP journalists at the scene reported counting at least 30 bodies as the wounded were transported to hospitals.
The incident comes amid intensified hostilities between the neighbors over the past three weeks. Pakistan declared an ‘open war’ on Afghanistan on Feb. 27, accusing the Taliban of sheltering militant groups that plot attacks inside Pakistan; Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said ‘our patience has run out.’ The Taliban government has denied involvement or support for militant groups operating from its territory.
The United Nations Security Council on Monday urged Afghanistan’s authorities to step up efforts to combat terrorism as diplomatic tensions and cross-border clashes continue.