Kabul was rocked by tragedy Monday night when an air strike hit a crowded drug treatment hospital, leaving scores dead and hundreds more feared injured. The Taliban government in Afghanistan swiftly accused Pakistan of carrying out the deadly attack, while Islamabad denied striking any civilian facility, according to BBC News.
Flames and smoke still lingered over the hospital compound on Tuesday morning. BBC reporters at the scene described chaos and grief, witnessing more than thirty bodies being carried out as rescue workers searched through twisted debris. Hospital officials said about 2,000 patients had been receiving treatment at the facility, raising fears the final death toll could climb into the hundreds.
Sharafat Zaman Amarkhail, spokesman for Afghanistan’s health ministry, insisted there were no military installations nearby. “This was a hospital, there were only patients and staff inside,” he said.
The explosions shattered the Kabul night around 8:50 p.m. local time, followed by the roar of aircraft and the thunder of air defences. Families rushed to the scene, crying out names of missing relatives, as ambulances flashed through the smoke.
A Taliban government spokesman claimed at least 400 people were killed, though that figure has not been independently confirmed. Pakistan’s information ministry rejected Kabul’s accusations as “misreporting of facts,” insisting its air operations precisely targeted “terrorist infrastructure” in Kabul and Nangarhar province.
The strikes come amid renewed border tensions between the two neighbours. Since late February, cross-border clashes have claimed at least 75 lives and injured nearly 200, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
The violence follows months of uneasy calm after both governments agreed to a fragile ceasefire in October. China, attempting to cool the crisis, said Foreign Minister Wang Yi has spoken with both sides, urging restraint and dialogue. “We call for a ceasefire at the earliest opportunity,” Beijing’s statement read.
As Kabul counts its dead, the echoes of war between two uneasy neighbours grow louder; once again reminding the world how fragile peace remains in this war scarred region.
