- Pak-Afghan tensions 'source of profound concern for all' says Bangladeshi opposition leader

ISTANBUL

China on Tuesday urged Pakistan and Afghanistan to exercise restraint and return to dialogue after Kabul accused Islamabad of carrying out deadly airstrikes on the Afghan capital.

The Afghan government late Monday claimed Pakistani airstrikes around 9 pm (1630GMT) hit the 2,000-bed Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul, leaving at least 408 people dead, according to Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani, Hurriyat Radio reported.

Pakistan rejected the accusation, saying it targeted Afghan military installations and ammunition depots in Kabul and in eastern Nangarhar province.

The claims made by Kabul and Islamabad could not be independently verified.

Responding to the escalating tensions, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said Beijing hopes both sides will avoid further conflict and pursue dialogue.

“Afghanistan and Pakistan are and will always be neighbors. Dialogue and negotiation are the only viable ways to resolve issues between the two countries,” Lin told reporters in Beijing.

“China hopes the two countries will remain calm and exercise restraint and engage in face-to-face talks at the earliest possible opportunity to resolve differences through dialogue,” he added.

He said China has urged both sides to ensure the safety of Chinese personnel, institutions and projects, adding that Beijing will continue efforts to help de-escalate tensions.

"The incident at the drug addiction treatment hospital is a heartbreaking tragedy. Even now, rescue personnel remain actively engaged in the recovery of human remains belonging to the martyrs," said Afghan government deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat.

Protect sick, hospitals

The UN mission in Kabul stated on Tuesday that Pakistani airstrikes impacted the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, a healthcare facility for the treatment of drug-addicted individuals, “dozens of whom were reportedly killed and injured.”

"Under international law, all parties to a conflict must respect and protect the sick and wounded, medical personnel, hospitals and ambulances and attacks on hospitals and civilian facilities are strictly prohibited,” said the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), calling for immediate ceasefire.

'Profound concern for our peoples'

Senior Bangladeshi politician and main opposition leader Shafiqur Rahman said the escalating tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan "are a source of profound concern for all who care about regional peace and the dignity of our peoples."

Noting that Pakistan and Afghanistan were "not merely neighbouring states," but also "brotherly nations bound by shared faith, culture and deep family ties that no border can sever," Rahman said: "we call upon these brotherly nations to declare an immediate ceasefire and pursue resolution through dialogue and diplomacy."

"Lasting peace is built at the table not on the battlefield. In the spirit of our shared faith and common future, we urge both sides to choose wisdom over confrontation," Rahman, lawmaker and chief of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, wrote on the US social media company X.

Separately, Ibraheem Bahiss, senior analyst on Afghanistan at Crisis Group think tank, said in a statement to Anadolu that both Pakistan and Afghanistan "urgently need to step back and return to the negotiation table."

"Without a ceasefire, the situation risks escalating further, with civilians likely to bear the brunt," he said.

Pakistan doubles down on its stance

Emphasizing that Islamabad was fighting "terrorism," Pakistan Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the airstrikes targeted no hospital, no drug rehabilitation center, and no civilian facility.

The visuals coming from the impacted site "leave no room for doubt. The flames and secondary detonations witnessed in Kabul further confirm that the intended ammunition storage site was hit with precision," Tarar said in a statement posted on X.

"Pakistan’s position is clear. We will continue to take every necessary measure to defend our citizens, degrade terrorist capability, and deny safe haven to those who wage terror against Pakistan from across the border."

Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have worsened in recent weeks after border tensions escalated, causing casualties and property damage.

Since late February, cross-border clashes have killed at least 107 people on both sides, including 13 soldiers and five civilians in Pakistan, with one soldier still missing.

According to Kabul, 13 soldiers and 76 civilians have been killed in Afghanistan, excluding the latest casualties claimed in Monday’s strike.

According to the UNAMA, it also documented 76 civilian deaths and 213 injuries in Afghanistan between Feb. 26 and March 16 -- except for the incident at Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital -- due to the ongoing hostilities.

Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of harboring anti-Pakistan militant groups, which Kabul denies.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has held separate calls with his Pakistani and Afghan counterparts, urging restraint. Beijing has also dispatched special envoy Yue Xiaoyong to engage both sides.

Separately, India said it “unequivocally condemns” the reported Pakistani airstrike on the Kabul facility.