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Families and friends of people who were being treated at a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul have continued to search for their loved ones two days after it was bombed by Pakistan, in the deadliest attack so far in the months-long conflict between the two countries.
The Afghan Taliban government has said more than 400 people were killed and 265 others wounded in the airstrike, which took place on Monday night as people and staff at the centre were praying days before the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Pakistan rejected the claim, saying it had “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure” – a sharp escalation that has worsened relations between the Islamic neighbours at a time when the US-Israeli war on Iran is destabilising the region.
On Wednesday, relatives of patients at the centre gathered at the site looking for their loved ones. Many said they did not know whether their relatives were alive or dead, or if they had been moved elsewhere.
“We came here looking for our patient, he is missing,” said Mazar, 50, who gave only one name. “We came to find out whether he is well, alive, or what has happened to him.”
Mazar said his relative had been admitted at the centre for the second time and there was no information about him. “We checked the lists, but his name was not in the list of the living. Maybe he is injured or has been killed,” he said.
Another man, who did not want to be named, said he had come in search of his relative on Tuesday but had not been allowed to enter the centre. “We did not find his body, nor was he among the wounded, and his name is not on the list of survivors,” he said. “We have come again today for more information.”
A witness at the scene told Reuters they saw smoke still smouldering from parts of the compound as firefighters continued to douse small fires about 36 hours after the bombing. Pieces of furniture, mattresses and clothing lay scattered among the debris.
The Afghan interior ministry said funerals of some those killed would take place later on Wednesday.
“Some of the bodies were not identifiable and are currently at the forensic department. Some bodies were intact and were handed over to their families,” said Abdul Mateen Qanie, a ministry spokesperson. “Others were completely destroyed, collected almost like pieces of flesh.”
Najibullah Farooqi, the head of Afghanistan’s legal medicine directorate, said bodies were being pulled out of the debris as late as Tuesday night and were being handed over to families. “Some bodies have been handed over after their identities were confirmed. However, a large number of bodies still remain with us,” he said.
Afghanistan and Pakistan have disputed the target of the airstrike.
Afghan authorities said the attack had clearly targeted a well-known rehabilitation centre, a former Nato military base named Camp Phoenix that had been converted into a civilian facility about a decade ago.
Pakistan has said it hit what it describes as a “military terrorist ammunition and equipment storage site”. It added that secondary detonations visible after the strikes clearly indicated the presence of large ammunition depots there.
The EU, UN agencies and international aid groups have said civilian and medical facilities should not be targeted during a conflict and called for immediate de-escalation.
The conflict between the allies turned foes began last year after Islamabad accused Kabul of sheltering and backing militants carrying out attacks across Pakistan, a charge denied by the Afghan Taliban government.
The conflict had ebbed amid efforts by countries including China to mediate, but flared again last month, with Pakistan directly targeting the Afghan Taliban and not just locations of Pakistani Taliban militants Islamabad said were across the border.
