Families have started a desperate search for their loved ones as rescue teams continue to pull out bodies from the rubble of a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul hit by a Pakistani air strike that Afghanistan said killed more than 400 people.
Witnesses have described horrific scenes of the entire building burning, the roof collapsing, and patients screaming and running for their lives after the deadliest attack on civilian infrastructure so far in a three-week war between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
A witness said it was like “doomsday” as they heard three bombs explode just as people in the centre were completing evening Ramadan prayers. They said two of the bombs struck areas where patients were residing.
“The whole place caught fire. It was like doomsday,” said Ahmad, 50, who said he was being treated at the facility. “My friends were burning in the fire, and we could not save them all.”
Rescue teams were searching for bodies in the rubble of the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital after the deadly Pakistani air raid on Monday at 9pm local time, on the 27th day of Ramadan, a holy month for Muslims.
Afghan interior ministry spokesperson, Abdul Mateen Quanie, said 408 people have been killed so far, with 265 injured at the 2,000-bed drug rehabilitation centre.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan has put a significantly lower death toll, saying they have counted 143 deaths so far in the bombing of the Kabul rehab, an official told Reuters on Wednesday.
An enraged relative of a victim, who was still searching for the remains, said Pakistan should be held accountable for bombing a civilian building.
“I am ready to sacrifice myself and become a martyr. What kind of situation is this? Pakistan has bombed us not once or twice, but many times,” Safiullah, who goes by a single name, told Tolo News.
Visuals showed heaps of rubble left behind after the strike, with the entire building reduced to debris. The remnants of broken bunk beds, charred pillows, blankets, and other personal belongings lay scattered in rooms that were not completely engulfed in flames.
At the site of the airstrike at Omid Camp, a blackened single-storey structure bore the marks of flames. In other places, buildings were reduced to heaps of wood and metal, with only a few bunk beds still intact, while blankets, personal belongings and bedding were strewn about.
At Wazir Mohammad Akbar Khan Hospital – where the wounded were rushed and the dead carried in – cries and screams shattered the sombre stillness, as families searched frantically for loved ones.
A mother screamed her son’s name as she scoured the corridors, searching desperately for any sign of life.
“We have been searching since morning to find our patients, whether they are sick, injured, or martyred. Until now, we don’t know what has happened to them,” Khan Wazir, another relative, told the outlet on Wednesday morning.
A 35-year-old patient battling methamphetamine addiction said he used to work part-time as an electrician at the rehabilitation centre. He said they were preparing to retire for the night when they first heard a loud explosion, and soon fire engulfed the rooms one by one.
“I was going to my room. We had locked one group, and I had another in my hand when there was a loud noise. The fire rose very high. As I tried to escape, my leg became weak, and then another explosion occurred,” he said.
Another eyewitness, Noor Mohammad, said he saw planes pass multiple times, and that one plane circled the facility and came back firing.
“When the plane returned again and saw that many people were gathered, they thought we were all involved in recruitment. Seeing the large number of people, they began bombing,” he said.
Pakistan has denied claims that it struck the hospital and said its target was miles away from the rehabilitation centre.
The Pakistani information ministry said it had attacked a “military terrorist ammunition and equipment storage site”, which it identified as Camp Phoenix.
“The visible secondary detonations after the strikes indicate the presence of large ammunition depots,” Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said in a post on X.
“No hospital, no drug rehabilitation centre, and no civilian facility was targeted,” he emphasised.
Residents, however, said that Camp Phoenix was an abandoned Nato military base in the city that was turned into a drug treatment centre about a decade ago. Locals referred to it as Omid Camp, or “camp of hope”, although its official name was the Ibn Sina Drug Addiction Treatment Hospital.
Condemnation has poured in following the deadly attack in Kabul, which was already reeling under economic stress since the Taliban’s takeover of the democratic government in Afghanistan in 2021 and ongoing clashes between the two neighbouring countries.
The World Health Organisation said the intensifying conflict is placing additional strain on health systems and increasing risks to the health and well-being of vulnerable populations.
“I urge all parties to de-escalate and prioritise peace and health. Peace is the best medicine,” said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (Unama) expressed deep concern over the strike on the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, confirming dozens killed and injured, and noting the “complete destruction” of parts of the facility, including areas housing adolescents, with no survivors reported in some sections.
Unama called for “immediate de-escalation”, a swift independent investigation, accountability for violations, and full protection of civilians under international humanitarian law.
UN Special Rapporteur, Richard Bennett, said on X that the air strike by Pakistan “must be promptly, independently and transparently investigated, those responsible held to account, and reparations made to victims and families”.
China, which is an ally of Pakistan, urged both countries to exercise “calm and restraint” following the airstrike and called on the two sides to “swiftly implement a ceasefire”.
Beijing did not condemn the strike but said further use of force would only complicate the situation and intensify tensions.
India, on the other hand, was more vocal in its criticism and said it “unequivocally condemns” Pakistan’s “barbaric airstrike”.
The Indian foreign ministry described it as a “cowardly and unconscionable act of violence” that claimed the lives of a large number of civilians in a facility that “can by no means be justified as a military target”.
The European Commission said that civilian infrastructure, medical facilities, and civilians must never be targeted, and called for the protection of civilians.
“We call on both sides to exercise maximum restraint and take all feasible measures to minimise the risk of harm to civilians,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas and Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib said in a statement.
Scores of people have been killed on both sides of the border during months of fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Islamabad has accused Kabul of harbouring militants who are being used to target Pakistan and were alleged to be involved in terrorist bombings. Taliban has denied the claims, saying tackling militancy is Pakistan's internal problem.
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