Pakistan announces pause in strikes on Afghanistan, 2 days after deadly Kabul airstrike

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Pakistan announced a intermission successful strikes against Afghanistan Wednesday, saying the determination was made up of the Muslim vacation of Eid al-Fitr astatine the petition of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey.

The announcement came 2 days aft Afghan officials said an airstrike by Pakistan deed a cause rehabilitation infirmary successful Kabul and killed hundreds of people. Authorities successful Kabul held a wide ceremonial Wednesday for immoderate of the victims of the strike.

Pakistan has rejected Afghanistan’s accusation that it targeted the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, insisting its strikes successful Kabul and eastbound Afghanistan Monday had been against subject facilities. It has dismissed Afghan claims of hundreds of casualties arsenic propaganda.

In a statement, Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said the intermission successful strikes would instrumentality effect astatine midnight Wednesday and stay successful spot until midnight Monday.

“Pakistan offers this motion successful bully religion and successful keeping with the Islamic norms,” helium said. However, helium added, “in lawsuit of immoderate cross-border attack, drone onslaught oregon immoderate violent incidental wrong Pakistan,” the operations volition instantly resume with renewed intensity.

Eid al-Fitr marks the extremity of the Muslim beatified period of Ramadan.

An escalating conflict

Monday's onslaught successful Kabul was the deadliest successful an escalating struggle betwixt the 2 neighbors, present successful its 3rd week. Afghan officials person enactment the decease toll astatine 408 people, with 265 wounded. The toll could not beryllium independently verified.

The struggle betwixt Afghanistan and Pakistan has seen repeated cross-border clashes arsenic good arsenic airstrikes wrong Afghanistan, including respective successful the capital, since it began successful precocious February, contempt planetary calls for a ceasefire.

Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of providing a harmless haven for militants who transportation retired attacks wrong Pakistan, particularly for the Pakistani Taliban. The radical is abstracted but intimately allied with the Afghan Taliban, who took implicit Afghanistan successful 2021 successful the aftermath of the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led troops. Kabul denies the charge.

Mass ceremonial successful Kabul

Bulldozers dug pits successful a Kabul cemetery up of Wednesday's wide funeral, which Health Ministry spokesperson Sharafat Zaman said was for much than 50 radical whose remains could not beryllium identified.

Light rainfall fell arsenic ambulances lined up extracurricular the cemetery and began unloading dozens of plain woody caskets. Some contained the remains of much than 1 person, Zaman said.

The 2,000-bed Omid infirmary was deed astatine astir 9 p.m. connected Monday. It had been renamed and expanded successful size astir a twelvemonth agone from a antecedently existing attraction installation arsenic portion of the Taliban government’s efforts to stamp retired a important cause addiction occupation successful the country.

Afghanistan’s immense poppy fields person been the root of overmuch of the world’s heroin, and that, successful operation with decades of struggle and wide poverty, has fueled cause addiction that the country’s existent rulers person vowed to combat.

The site, adjacent Kabul’s planetary airport, is adjacent to a erstwhile NATO subject base, Camp Phoenix, wherever U.S. forces utilized to bid the Afghan National Army. It wasn’t instantly wide what was present housed astatine the site. The onslaught caused an aggravated occurrence astatine the hospitals, with footage from section tv showing rescue crews combing done the wreckage with flashlights precocious into Monday nighttime arsenic firefighters struggled to extinguish the blaze.

Pakistan says ammunition depot targeted

In an interrogation with The Associated Press successful Islamabad earlier Wednesday, Tarar said Pakistan had "only targeted violent infrastructure.”

“We person conscionable gone aft the Afghan Taliban regime, their subject setups, their violent infrastructure, and each the setups which are supporting oregon promoting terrorists,” Tarar said.

He told AP that Pakistan's strikes “have been precise precise and these strikes were carried retired successful an ammunition depot successful Kabul. In the aftermath of which, we saw fumes and flames successful the ambiance successful Kabul."

He said the consequent nonaccomplishment of life, which helium did not quantify, occurred “because determination was ammunition, determination were method equipment, determination were arms determination successful that depot.”

Bodies were inactive being pulled from the smoldering remains of the infirmary connected Tuesday morning.

Afghan authorities spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid condemned the strike, accusing Pakistan of “targeting hospitals and civilian sites to perpetrate horrors.” He said those killed were “innocent civilians and addicts.”

The latest struggle began successful February

The fighting, the astir terrible betwixt the 2 neighbors, began successful precocious February aft Afghanistan launched cross-border attacks successful effect to Pakistani airstrikes. The clashes disrupted a ceasefire brokered by Qatar successful October, aft earlier warring killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants.

Pakistan has declared it’s successful “open war” with Afghanistan past month. The struggle has alarmed the planetary community, peculiarly arsenic the country is 1 wherever different militant organizations, including al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, inactive person a beingness and person been trying to resurface.

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Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writer Elena Becatoros contributed from Athens, Greece

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