India condemned the Pakistani airstrike on a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, calling the act ‘Barbaric, Cowardly’. At least 400 people were reportedly killed in the airstrike, while 250 others have been seriously injured.
“India unequivocally condemns Pakistan's barbaric airstrike on the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul on the night of March 16. This is a cowardly and unconscionable act of violence that has claimed the lives of a large number of civilians in a facility which can by no means be justified as a military target. Pakistan is now trying to dress up a massacre as a military operation,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry called the attack a “heinous act of aggression by Pakistan” and “a blatant assault on Afghanistan’s sovereignty and a direct threat to regional peace and stability.”
“The international community must hold the perpetrators of this criminal act accountable and ensure that the wanton targeting by Pakistan of civilians in Afghanistan ceases without delay. India extends its deepest condolences to the bereaved families, wishes a swift recovery to those injured, and stands in solidarity with the people of Afghanistan in this tragic moment. We also reiterate our unwavering support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan,” the statement read.
Extending its deepest condolences to the bereaved families, India also wished a speedy recovery to the injured and expressed solidarity with the people of Afghanistan during this difficult time.
Afghanistan’s deputy government spokesman, Hamdullah Fitrat, stated in a post on X that at least 400 people were killed and around 250 were injured after the strike late Monday night.
Reports by Afghan media outlets indicated that nearby residential areas were also affected, with multiple buildings sustaining structural damage.
Pakistan strongly denied targeting any civilian infrastructure, with the officials maintaining that the strikes in Kabul and eastern Afghanistan were aimed solely at militant positions. Pakistan’s Ministry of Information, claiming Afghanistan’s claims ‘false’, said that the operations "precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure, including technical equipment storage and ammunition storage of the Afghan Taliban."
According to an Afghanistan news channel, Tolo News, the airstrike was not the first airstrike by the Pakistan Ministry to target civilians. Afghan civilians have been primarily targeted by Pakistani forces during previous cross-border strikes as well, the channel reported.
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