Afghanistan’s health ministry puts preliminary death toll at 200 as Islamabad denies targeting facility for drug addicts
Heavy casualties were feared in Kabul after a hospital that treats drug users was hit by airstrikes, which Afghanistan blamed on Pakistan’s military.
Pakistan dismissed the accusation, saying the strikes on Monday – which were also launched against eastern Afghanistan – did not hit any civilian sites.
Sharafat Zaman, the health ministry spokesperson, gave a preliminary death toll of 200 during a television interview with local media that was posted on X. He said all parts of the drug treatment hospital had been destroyed.
Afghanistan’s government spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, also posted the video interview. Local television stations posted footage of firefighters struggling to extinguish flames among the ruins of a building.
