Pakistani airstrikes hit Kabul hospital, escalating civil death toll and regional tensions
Pakistan launched air raids into Afghanistan's capital early Monday morning following reports from the region indicating a series of drone interceptions by Pakistani forces over Rawalpindi, with some drones reportedly aimed toward Islamabad military headquarters in response to recent strikes on Kabul; Afghan authorities confirmed explosions rocked the city around 9 p.m., damaging or destroying facilities including an addiction treatment hospital where several patients were being treated for drug dependency.
Key Points
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1Pakistan launched airstrikes on Kabul, which Afghan officials allege killed hundreds or at least six civilians.
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2The Taliban condemned Pakistani forces for allegedly deliberately targeting innocent civilians and compared tactics to Israeli operations in Gaza.
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3Islamabad denied civilian casualties initially but later claimed it conducted precision strikes against military targets while shooting down some of the drones that launched from Afghanistan.
Developments
An air strike by Pakistani forces on Kabul killed at least 408 people, according to Afghan officials who claimed it targeted civilians in the capital's drug rehabilitation hospital. Pakistan rejected this assertion and denied verifying casualty figures while insisting its attack focused solely on military installations without causing collateral damage.
The Afghan Taliban condemned Pakistani airstrikes on civilian locations like hospitals and schools as deliberate attacks violating humanitarian principles that killed approximately 400 people in Kabul's drug rehabilitation center. Consequently, spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid declared an end to diplomatic talks with Pakistan while vowing retaliation for the alleged escalation of violence against civilians by Islamabad forces.
Afghanistan's Taliban accused Pakistani airstrikes on Monday of killing civilians at a drug treatment facility in Kabul, while Islamabad denied targeting any hospital and claimed precision strikes against militant infrastructure were necessary to protect innocent citizens from cross-border terrorism. The two nations remain engaged over escalating tensions regarding alleged sheltering of militants by the Afghan government alongside ongoing clashes along their shared border.