Kabul, 17 Mar

Afghanistan's deputy government spokesman said early Tuesday the death toll from an airstrike by Pakistan that hit a hospital treating drug users in the Afghan capital Kabul has increased to 400.

In a post on X, Hamdullah Fitrat said the strike on Monday night had destroyed large sections of the hospital. He said the death toll so far stood at 400, while a further 250 people had been reported injured. He said rescue teams were trying to control the fire at the building and recover the bodies of the victims.

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Pakistan had earlier denied that it had hit a hospital, saying its strike in Kabul and other strikes in eastern Afghanistan Monday had not hit any civilian sites.

Afghanistan on Monday accused Pakistan's military of targeting a Kabul hospital that treats drug users in airstrikes, with the country's Health Ministry spokesman saying more than 200 people had been killed. Pakistan dismissed the accusation, saying the strikes — which were also conducted in eastern Afghanistan — did not hit any civilian sites.

Health Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman gave the death toll 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 spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, also posted the video interview. Local television stations posted footage showing firefighters struggling to extinguish flames among the ruins of a building.

The alleged attack came hours after Afghan officials said the two sides exchanged fire along their common border, killing four people in Afghanistan, as the deadliest fighting between the neighbours in years entered a third week.

Mujahid had earlier condemned the strike on X, before the death toll had become apparent, saying it violated Afghanistan's territory. He said most of those killed and wounded were patients undergoing treatment at the facility.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's spokesman, Mosharraf Zaidi, dismissed the allegations as baseless, saying no hospital was targeted in Kabul.

In a post on X, Pakistan's Ministry of Information said the strikes "precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure including technical equipment storage and ammunition storage of Afghan Taliban” and Afghanistan-based Pakistani militants in Kabul and Nangarhar, saying the facilities were being used against innocent Pakistani civilians.

It said Pakistan's targeting was “precise and carefully undertaken to ensure no collateral damage is inflicted.” The ministry said Mujahid's claim was “false and misleading” and aimed at stirring sentiment and cover what it described as ”illegitimate support for cross-border terrorism."

It came hours after the U.N. Security Council called on Afghanistan's Taliban rulers to immediately step up efforts to combat terrorism. Pakistan accuses Kabul of harbouring militant groups, particularly the Pakistani Taliban, which it says carry out attacks inside Pakistan.

The Security Council resolution, adopted unanimously, didn't name Pakistan but condemns “in the strongest terms all terrorist activity including terrorist attacks.” The resolution also extends the U.N. political mission in Afghanistan, UNAMA, for three months.

Pakistan's government often accuses Afghanistan's Taliban government of providing safe haven to the Pakistani Taliban, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, as well as to outlawed Baloch separatist groups and other militants who frequently target Pakistani security forces and civilians across the country. Kabul denies the charge.

Earlier, Afghan officials said four people, including two children, were killed and 10 other people in southeastern Afghanistan were wounded in Monday's exchange of fire. Mortar shells fired from Pakistan overnight struck villages in Khost Province and destroyed several homes, said Mustaghfar Gurbaz, a spokesperson for the provincial governor.

There was no immediate comment from Pakistan, which repeatedly has said its military only targets Afghan posts and militant hideouts.

Islamabad has described the situation as an “open war.” The cross-border clashes have included multiple Pakistani airstrikes on Afghanistan's capital, Kabul.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said Afghanistan'sTaliban administration crossed a “red line” by deploying drones that injured several civilians in Pakistan last week.

Responding to those attacks, Pakistan's air force over the weekend struck equipment storage sites and “technical support infrastructure” in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar Province, saying it was being used for attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul said Pakistan hit two locations, including an empty security site and a drug rehabilitation center that sustained minor damage.

The fighting began in late February after Afghanistan launched cross-border attacks in response to Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan that Kabul said killed civilians. The clashes disrupted a ceasefire brokered by Qatar in October after earlier fighting killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants.