KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Pakistan on Thursday rejected Amnesty International’s call for an investigation into its March airstrike on a drug rehabilitation center in Kabul, which the rights group said could constitute a war crime, dismissing the allegations as unsupported.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi told a news briefing in Islamabad that Pakistan “completely rejects the allegations” made by Amnesty International, describing it as “unfortunate” that such serious claims were made “without any credible evidence.”
The 200-bed Omid Drug Rehabilitation Centre in Kabul was hit by a Pakistani airstrike on March 16, killing at least 269 civilians and injuring 122 others, according to UN figures. Many of those killed were patients receiving treatment at the facility. The Taliban authorities have reported a higher death toll from the strike.
Pakistani officials have said the site was being used as a “weapons and ammunition store” or for other military purposes at the time of the strike.
In a report released on Wednesday, Amnesty said its four-month investigation, which included reviewing more than 60 photographs and videos and 30 satellite images, found no evidence supporting Pakistan’s claim that the facility had military use.
“The air strikes violated the special protection afforded to healthcare facilities under international humanitarian law,” Amnesty said, adding that the attack should be investigated as a possible war crime.
Isabelle Lassee, Amnesty International’s acting regional director for South Asia, said the strike represented a serious violation of international humanitarian law and a possible failure in military planning that resulted in significant civilian casualties.
Amnesty said it had contacted Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry seeking information on any investigation into the strike, including evidence supporting the government’s claim that the site was a weapons facility. The group said it had received no response at the time of publication.
Andrabi said Pakistan’s military operations were conducted under its right to self-defence and were aimed exclusively at militants and their logistical infrastructure in Afghanistan.
“The scale and scope of this action reflected restraint,” he said, adding that Pakistan rejects any allegation that it had violated international law.
He called on Amnesty International and the international community to investigate what he described as the Taliban’s continued support for armed groups, including those operating against Pakistan.
Andrabi also urged the international community to hold the Taliban accountable for failing to meet commitments under United Nations Security Council resolutions and the Doha Agreement to prevent Afghan territory from being used for attacks.
He said Pakistan reserved the right to take “all necessary measures” to protect its sovereignty, territorial integrity, and citizens.
The strike on the Omid centre was part of a series of Pakistani air operations inside Afghanistan in recent months. According to UN figures, at least 372 civilians were killed and 392 others injured in Pakistani airstrikes across Afghanistan between January and March.
On June 28, Pakistani airstrikes killed at least 28 additional civilians in the eastern provinces of Paktia, Paktika and Kunar.
Earlier, Human Rights Watch also called for an investigation into the strike, describing it as potentially unlawful and possibly amounting to a war crime. The group called for an independent investigation and accountability for any violations.
“Serious violations of the laws of war committed with criminal intent, that is, deliberately or recklessly, are war crimes,” Human Rights Watch said in a statement following the attack.
