Kabul, March 24 (IANS) In a poignant sight, several Afghan families searched for their loved ones on Eid in Afghanistan after Pakistan's airstrike on a drug rehab centre in Kabul claimed lives of over 400 people on March 16, a report has detailed. The Pakistani attack against what it termed as "military and terrorist infrastructure" in Afghanistan seemed to have gone wrong catastrophically as a rehabilitation centre for drug addicts was targetted which resulted in a massive tragedy.

On Eid, Sohrab Faqiri was looking for the grave of his brother killed in a Pakistani airstrike on Kabul. Faqiri’s brother, Qais, a tailor and father of a 10-year-old boy, was receiving treatment at the facility for the past three months, UK's leading daily The Guardian reported.

Faqiri reached the site of the incident following the strike, however, he could not find his brother among the survivors. For the next two days, Faqiri was visiting hospitals in Kabul, however, he could not find information about his brother. Then, he spotted his brother in a video of a mass burial of the airstrike victims by the authorities.

Faqiri went to the hillside graveyard on the edge of Kabul, where the burial took place. Faqiri said he found rows of stones planted along lines of upturned earth. However, there were no names to identify any of the bodies of the victims. He said, "Worst of all is that his grave is not known to us,” Faqiri said at the cemetery, while getting emotional.

Pakistan's attack on the rehabilitation centre took place just as patients returned to their dormitories after gathering for special prayers at night during Ramadan.

Wali Nazir Mohammad (23) went to his bed after prayers in one of the smaller buildings which accommodated about 20 patients in a single room. When he woke up after the explosion, some of his fellow patients and room were on fire. Many in the room had died while others were calling for help.

Mohammad said that the room was not directly hit but shrapnel came through the walls, slicing into him. Wali Nazir Mohammad, who was undergoing treatment at the hospital, said, "I have a message for our government: please take our revenge." “If the government cannot take our revenge, I ask them to give us weapons," The Guardian quoted him as saying.

Afghanistan's Ministry of Interior spokesperson Abdul Matin Qane had warned on March 17 that the country will give a 'teeth-breaking response' to the airstrikes carried out by Pakistan in Kabul.

Qane said Afghanistan considers Pakistan's latest strike as major escalation and warned of a response. He said, "Such attacks cannot go unanswered,” reiterating that Afghan authorities consider the incident a violation of Afghanistan's sovereignty, Ariana News reported.

The incident marked a sharp escalation in tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan in recent weeks due to airstrikes, artillery fire, and accusations from both sides.

--IANS

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