Afghanistan Accuses Pakistan Of Deadly Strike On Kabul Hospital
The escalating border conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan took a grave turn on Monday evening when Pakistani airstrikes reportedly struck a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, killing over 400 people and wounding around 250, according to Afghan Taliban authorities.
The attack occurred around 9:00 p.m. local time, with powerful explosions heard in central Kabul districts including Shahr-e-Naw and Wazir Akbar Khan. Witnesses reported thick plumes of smoke rising from the impact sites. Afghanistan’s Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman told local media that the facility, which treated drug addicts, was completely destroyed. Deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat later updated the casualty figures to more than 400 dead and 250 injured, as reported by the Associated Press (AP).
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid condemned the strikes on X, describing them as a violation of Afghan sovereignty, a “crime,” and an “act of inhumanity.” He emphasized that the majority of victims were patients undergoing treatment at the hospital.
Pakistan’s Ministry of Information strongly rejected the allegations, insisting that its forces had carried out precise strikes on military installations and terrorist infrastructure in Kabul and Nangarhar province. The ministry stated that the targets included storage facilities for technical equipment and ammunition belonging to the Afghan Taliban and Pakistan-based militants operating from Afghan soil. Officials maintained that these sites were actively used to launch attacks against Pakistani civilians. They described the operation as carefully executed to avoid collateral damage and dismissed Mujahid’s claims as “false and misleading,” intended to inflame public sentiment and obscure Afghanistan’s alleged backing of cross-border terrorism.
The incident forms part of a broader surge in hostilities along the shared border, with Pakistan conducting multiple airstrikes on Kabul in recent weeks amid accusations that the Taliban administration harbors militants responsible for attacks inside Pakistan. Tensions have included deadly clashes, drone deployments, and strikes on both sides. Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari recently declared that Taliban actions, including drone strikes that harmed Pakistani civilians, had crossed a “red line.” In response, Pakistani forces targeted sites in provinces like Kandahar over the weekend.
Afghanistan’s administrative deputy prime minister Abdul Salam Hanafi, speaking at a meeting with analysts and media, expressed sorrow over civilian losses from Pakistani attacks and asserted that defending national sovereignty is a collective responsibility, while claiming the conflict was forced upon Afghanistan.