India slams Pakistan over ‘barbaric’ Kabul hospital strike as civilian toll mounts

India on March 17 launched a scathing attack on Pakistan over alleged airstrikes on a rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, calling the incident “barbaric” and a “heinous act of aggression” that has left hundreds of civilians dead.

According to Taliban authorities in Afghanistan, at least 400 people were killed and 250 injured when Pakistani forces struck the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital on the night of March 16. Pakistan has denied the allegations, insisting its operation targeted “military installations and terrorist support infrastructure.”

In a sharply worded statement, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal accused Islamabad of attempting to “dress up a massacre as a military operation.”

“India unequivocally condemns Pakistan’s barbaric airstrike… 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,” he said.

New Delhi further described the strike as a “blatant assault” on Afghan sovereignty and warned it posed a direct threat to regional peace and stability. The statement accused Pakistan of a “persistent pattern of reckless behaviour” and of externalizing its internal challenges through cross-border violence.

Highlighting the timing during the holy month of Ramzan, India said the attack was “all the more reprehensible,” stressing that no moral, legal, or religious justification exists for targeting a hospital and its patients.

India also called on the international community to hold those responsible accountable and ensure an immediate halt to attacks on civilians in Afghanistan. It extended condolences to the victims’ families and reiterated support for Afghanistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The Taliban administration condemned the strikes as a violation of sovereignty and claimed civilian areas were deliberately targeted. It also launched retaliatory attacks, further escalating tensions in the region.

Pakistan, however, countered that Afghanistan provides safe haven to militants responsible for cross-border attacks—an allegation the Taliban leadership has repeatedly denied, maintaining that militancy within Pakistan is an internal issue.

Meanwhile, Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, said he was “dismayed” by reports of fresh Pakistani airstrikes and the resulting civilian casualties, adding to growing international concern over the unfolding crisis.