The Afghan Taliban government said the strike, which hit a facility in the capital late on Monday as patients and staff were praying ahead of the end of Ramadan, also wounded at least 265 people.

The casualty figures have not been independently verified.The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) told Reuters that 143 people were killed and 119 wounded, offering a significantly lower toll than Afghan authorities.

Relatives gathered at the site on Wednesday, combing through lists and debris in search of loved ones who had been undergoing treatment at the centre.

“We came here looking for our patient, he is missing,” said Mazar, 50, who gave only one name.

“We checked the lists, but his name was not in the list of the living. Maybe he is injured or has been killed.”Afghanistan’s interior ministry said funerals for some of those killed would take place later in the day.

Afghan authorities said the strike hit a well-known civilian rehabilitation centre, formerly a NATO military base known as Camp Phoenix that had been converted into a treatment facility about a decade ago.

Pakistan rejected those claims, stating that its forces had “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure,” disputing assertions that civilians were the primary victims.

Independent experts said verifying the exact nature of the target would be difficult without a third-party investigation, given sharply conflicting accounts from both sides.

The strike marks a sharp deterioration in relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, already strained by cross-border security concerns. The incident comes amid broader regional instability linked to the ongoing U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, further complicating the security landscape.

”Ahmad, a 50-year-old patient undergoing treatment at the facility, said he watched helplessly as fire engulfed the dormitory he shared with 25 others. He was the only one to survive.

“The whole place caught fire. It was like doomsday,” he told Reuters, describing how cries for help echoed through the building as the blaze spread rapidly following the explosions.

The Taliban-led government in Kabul said at least 400 people were killed and around 250 injured in the attack making it one of the deadliest incidents in the Afghan capital in recent months.

Pakistani officials, however, denied targeting any civilian or medical facility, stating that the strikes were aimed at militant infrastructure.

The incident underscores escalating tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, which have seen periodic flare-ups along their shared border. The latest strike comes during the holy month of Ramadan, a time typically marked by restraint but increasingly overshadowed by violence in the region.

Ahmad said the attack came shortly after evening prayers, when patients had gathered inside their dormitory. Within moments, explosions ripped through the premises,triggering fires that spread uncontrollably.

Trapped inside, many were unable to escape.Mohammad Mian, a radiology worker at the hospital, described the destruction as overwhelming. He said many patients were housed in container-like units across the campus, where survival chances were slim once the bombs struck.

“It was extremely terrifying,” he said. “Those who survived were the ones whose rooms were not destroyed. But where the bombs fell, everyone there was killed.”When Reuters reporters visited the site on Tuesday, they found charred walls, collapsed structures, and debris scattered across the premises.

Personal belongings pillows, shoes, and clothing lay buried under rubble, silent reminders of those who had lived there just hours before.Inside Ahmad’s dormitory, some bunk beds remained upright, their bedding eerily undisturbed.

The ceiling had been blown away, exposing the room to the sky. The contrast between intact objects and total destruction around them highlighted the randomness of survival.Dr. Ahmad Wali Yousafzai, a health officer at the facility, said the hospital housed around 2,000 patients at the time of the strike. He recalled hearing three powerful explosions that sent shockwaves through the building.

“The blasts threw people from one wall to another,” he said. “Then fires started, and there were screams for help from all directions.”Medical staff and volunteers struggled to respond amid the chaos.

With limited personnel and resources, many victims could not be reached in time.“We were too few in number to save all of them,” Yousafzai added.

Emergency responders worked through the night and into the next day. Ambulance driver Haji Fahim said he transported at least eight bodies over several hours to a nearby facility, the Afghan-Japan Hospital.

“Now we have come again,” he said on Tuesday. “There are still bodies under the rubble.”The taliban government condemned the strike and called for international attention, while Islamabad reiterated that its operation targeted what it described as “terrorist support infrastructure.”

The conflicting accounts could not be independently verified.Analysts say the incident risks further destabilizing an already fragile relationship between the two neighbours, where cross-border militancy, refugee flows, and security concerns have long fueled mistrust.

For survivors like Ahmad, however, the geopolitical narratives offer little comfort. Standing amid the ruins, he said the memories of that night the flames, the screams, and the helplessness would stay with him forever.

“I could hear them calling for help,” he said quietly. “But there was nothing I could do.”

The Taliban said at least 400 people were killed and 250 injured in the strike, which it said hit a drug rehabilitation hospital, while Pakistan rejected the claim, saying it targeted military installations and “terrorist support infrastructure.

Pakistan had long been a key backer of the Taliban, supporting its emergence in the 1990s as part of a broader strategy to secure “strategic depth” in its rivalry with India.

Relations initially appeared strong after the Taliban returned to power in 2021, with then-prime minister Imran Khan welcoming the development. However, ties deteriorated as Islamabad accused Kabul of failing to curb militant groups operating from Afghan territory.

Pakistan says leaders and fighters of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan are based in Afghanistan and have intensified attacks inside Pakistan. It also accuses Afghan territory of being used by Baloch insurgents.

Violence linked to these groups has risen steadily since 2022, according to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, contributing to mounting pressure on Islamabad to act.

The Taliban deny providing safe haven to militants targeting Pakistan and counter that Islamabad harbours fighters linked to Islamic State, Pakistan rejects.

The latest strike follows weeks of intensifying clashes, including Pakistani air and ground operations targeting Taliban positions and infrastructure along the border. Officials said those actions came after attacks by Afghan forces on Pakistani border posts.

Pakistan’s defence minister has described the situation as amounting to an “open war,” reflecting the scale of the confrontation.Earlier attempts to stabilise the situation, including a ceasefire mediated by Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, have failed to hold.

Repeated border clashes, closures and disruptions to trade have further strained ties between the neighbours, signalling a breakdown in what was once a closely aligned relationship.

A Pakistani security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Pakistan conducted the strikes overnight but said the targets were fighters belonging to the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a militant group Islamabad accuses of carrying out attacks inside Pakistan.

Khalil Zadran, spokesman for Kabul police, said the bombardment struck homes in the Afghan capital, leaving four people dead and 15 injured. Women and children were among the victims, he said.

The strikes occurred as hostilities between Afghanistan and Pakistan have intensified along their shared frontier, with both sides accusing each other of escalating violence.

Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said Pakistani strikes also targeted the southern province of Kandahar Province and the eastern provinces of Paktia Province and Paktika Province, all of which lie near the border with Pakistan.

In Kandahar, air strikes hit a fuel depot used by Kam Air near the city’s airport. The company supplies fuel to civilian airlines as well as aircraft operated by the United Nations, according to Afghan officials.

Pakistan has said its operations target militant groups and insists that its military has not killed civilians during the campaign. Casualty figures reported by both sides have been difficult to verify independently.

Tensions between the two neighbours have escalated sharply since late February.According to Afghan authorities, the latest clashes follow an offensive launched by Afghanistan on Feb.

26 along the border in response to earlier Pakistani air strikes targeting the TTP.Pakistan subsequently declared what it described as “open war” against Taliban authorities and carried out strikes in Kabul on Feb. 27.

Cross-border fighting has since intensified, including artillery and mortar exchanges in eastern Afghanistan. Afghan officials said four members of the same family, including two children, were killed in recent shelling in Khost Province.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said that Pakistani military operations between Feb. 26 and March 5 had killed 56 civilians in Afghanistan, including 24 children.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the violence has forced about 115,000 people to leave their homes.Clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces have also disrupted trade and forced residents near the frontier to flee their communities in recent weeks.

The military said naval ships were deployed to accompany commercial vessels to ensure the uninterrupted flow of national energy supplies and maintain the security of sea lines of communication, which are critical for the country’s economy.

The escort operation was launched to counter what the military described as “multidimensional threats” to national shipping and maritime commerce. Pakistan relies heavily on sea routes for trade, with the armed forces noting that roughly 90 percent of the country’s commerce moves by sea.

Officials said maintaining secure maritime corridors was essential to ensuring the continuity of energy imports and broader economic stability.

Pakistan, which shares a border with Iran in its southwest, depends significantly on oil and gas supplies from Gulf producers.

Amid concerns about supply disruptions linked to the regional conflict, the government raised domestic fuel prices by about 20 percent last week, triggering long lines at petrol stations across the country.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday announced a series of austerity measures aimed at conserving fuel, including closing government offices one day a week and directing half of public-sector staff to work from home.

Authorities also ordered schools to shut for two weeks as part of the effort to reduce fuel consumption and limit transport demand.

The military said naval forces remained fully prepared to respond to emerging maritime security challenges but did not provide further details about the scope or duration of the escort operations.

The move comes as heightened tensions across the Gulf region raise concerns among energy importers about potential disruptions to shipping routes and oil supplies.

He was detained in connection with a case for making threats against police officers and judicial magistrate Zeba Chaudhry on August 20 at a gathering in F-9 Park.

As a result of Khan’s persistent absences, Civil Judge Rana Mujahid Rahim also made public the three-page reserved verdict and issued non-bailable arrest warrants.

According to Geo News, Khan submitted a request for an exemption from physically appearing before the judge, requesting authorization to participate in the court sessions digitally through video link.

According to sources, many choices were made at a conference between Islamabad and Lahore police officials when the authorities returned to the city to arrest Imran Khan for the second time.

The sources told Geo News that Islamabad police would get in touch with Khan’s chief security officer before heading to Zaman Park.

Imran Khan has been the subject of two separate non-bailable arrest orders from different courts. He hasn’t appeared before them often, though, instead, he hosted a gathering in Lahore where he declared that this Sunday will be the day of a historic rally.

When the authorities went back to the city to detain Imran Khan for the second time, numerous decisions were reportedly made at a meeting between Islamabad and Lahore police officials.

According to the sources, before visiting Zaman Park, Islamabad police would make contact with Khan’s chief security officer.

Two distinct non-bailable arrest warrants for Imran Khan have been issued by different courts. Though he hasn’t frequently addressed them, he did organise a gathering in Lahore when he announced that this coming Sunday will be the day of a historic march.

A total of 37 cases have been brought against Imran Khan around the nation. They include court cases, police and Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) investigations, as well as actions taken by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) against the leader of the PTI.