Taliban Says 400 Killed in Pakistan Air Strikes on Kabul

JAKARTA - The spokesman for the Afghan Taliban Government on Tuesday said at least 400 people were killed and 250 injured in a Pakistani air strike on a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, a sharp escalation in the conflict between the two neighboring countries.

"The secondary explosion seen after the attack clearly shows the presence of a large ammunition depot," Pakistan Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said in a post on X, launching Al Arabiya from Reuters (17/3).

At the scene, a one-story building that was burned out showed traces of the fire. Elsewhere, buildings were reduced to piles of wood and metal, with only a few bunk beds still intact in some places, while blankets, personal belongings, and bedding were strewn about.

Eyewitnesses said they heard three bombs explode just as people in the hospital were finishing Maghrib prayers and two of them hit rooms and patient areas.

"The whole place was on fire. It felt like the end of the world," said Ahmad (50), who said he was being treated at the facility and only gave his first name.

"My friends were burned in the flames, and we couldn't save them all," he explained.

Images from local media taken overnight showed flames devouring a single-storey building, while thick smoke billowed from another part of the same complex and workers carried bodies on stretchers.

Ambulances and police vehicles were parked near the gates of the damaged facility, which a sign described as a "drug treatment hospital" with 1,000 beds, while security personnel stood guard.

"When I arrived (last night), I saw everything was burning, people were burning," ambulance driver Haji Fahim told Reuters.

"Early in the morning they called me again and told me to come back because there were still bodies under the rubble," he added.

Hamdullah Fitrat, a Taliban deputy spokesman, said the airstrike occurred at 9 p.m. on Monday, targeting the state-run Omid hospital, which he said was a drug rehabilitation center with 2,000 beds.

"Most of the hospitals have been destroyed, and there are concerns about many casualties," he said in a post on X.

"Unfortunately, the number of deaths so far has reached 400 people, with up to 250 others injured," he continued.

Rescue teams were at the scene to control the fire and evacuate the victims, he added, without giving details on how many bodies had been found and how the death toll was calculated.

On the other hand, Pakistan rejected the claim as false and misleading, saying they "precisely targeted terrorist military installations and supporting infrastructure" on Monday night.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Prime Minister of Pakistan called Afghanistan's statement about drug users being targeted a "constant lie" and said Pakistan's "counter-terrorism operations" would continue for as long as necessary to eliminate "terrorists and their infrastructure."

Last night, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of Pakistan said the Afghan Taliban's claim was "false reporting of facts."

"The targeting of Pakistan was precise and carried out carefully to ensure no additional damage was caused," the ministry said in a post on X.

"This false reporting as a drug rehabilitation facility aims to arouse sentiments, cover illegal support for cross-border terrorism," he added.

The air raids came hours after China said it remained ready to continue efforts to ease tensions between the South Asian Muslim countries and urged both to avoid an escalation of the war and return to the negotiating table.

The conflict, which began last month, is the worst ever between the two neighboring countries that share a 2,600 km (1,600 miles) border. Tensions had eased amid efforts by friendly countries, including China, to mediate and end the fighting before it flared again, this time just days before the Eid al-Fitr festival marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

The escalation comes amid wider instability in the region, where US-Israeli attacks on Iran and Tehran's retaliation have plunged the Middle East into crisis.

Fierce fighting between the South Asian neighbors, once close allies, erupted last month with Pakistani air raids in Afghanistan that Islamabad says target militant strongholds.

Afghanistan called the attack a violation of sovereignty that targeted civilians and launched a retaliatory attack.

Meanwhile, Islamabad said Kabul was providing shelter for militants who carried out attacks against Pakistan. The Taliban denied the allegations, saying that tackling militancy was a Pakistani internal matter.