Hundreds of people are feared dead following a strike on a hospital in Kabul, with Afghan officials accusing Pakistan’s military of carrying out the attack, a claim Islamabad has strongly denied.
Afghanistan’s deputy government spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat said the death toll had reached at least 400, with around 250 others injured. He added that most of the victims were patients receiving treatment at the facility.
Pakistan rejected the allegations, calling them “false and misleading,” and stated that its forces had “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure,” denying any civilian site was hit.
According to Sharafat Zaman, approximately 3,000 patients were inside the state-run Omid hospital at the time of the strike. Footage shared by local media showed firefighters battling intense flames amid the destroyed structure.
Witnesses described scenes of devastation. Ahmad, a 50-year-old security guard, said the hospital was engulfed in fire within moments. Of the 25 people in the staff dormitory, he was reportedly the only survivor.
The strikes began around 9pm on Monday. Another security guard, Omid Stanikzai, said anti-aircraft fire preceded the bombing. “There were military units all around us,” he said, adding that bombs were dropped after the units engaged the aircraft.
By Tuesday morning, large sections of the hospital had collapsed, leaving behind charred walls and debris as rescue teams searched for survivors.
Ambulance driver Haji Fahim said he arrived to find “everything was burning,” adding that he was later called back to retrieve bodies still trapped under the rubble.
Survivors recounted chaos inside the wards. A patient, Yousaf Rahim, said the explosion triggered panic as smoke and fire spread rapidly. “Patients fell from their beds, screaming and running,” he said, describing the scene as “horrific.”
Dejan Panic, representing the NGO Emergency, said the organization had received three bodies and was treating 27 wounded.
The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, expressed concern over the reports and urged all parties to exercise restraint and respect international law, particularly the protection of civilians and medical facilities.
The incident comes amid escalating tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Afghan officials said earlier clashes along the border had killed four people, while Pakistan reported casualties from cross-border shelling in its Bajaur district.
Islamabad described the current situation as an “open war,” with hostilities intensifying since late February following retaliatory strikes. The ongoing conflict has displaced more than 20,000 people and marks one of the most severe escalations between the two sides in recent years.
Efforts by China to mediate the crisis have so far failed, despite the dispatch of a special envoy aimed at bringing both sides back to negotiations.
Both governments continue to trade accusations, with Pakistan alleging that Afghan طالبان authorities are providing safe haven to militant groups, a claim Kabul denies.
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