United Nations, March 18 (IANS) UN Secretary‑General Antonio Guterres “strongly condemns” the deadly Pakistani air strike on a hospital in Kabul and has called for an independent investigation into the incident, his Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq said on Wednesday.

Afghanistan’s Taliban government has said that more than 400 people were killed in the Pakistani attack on a drug rehabilitation hospital overnight Monday-Tuesday, marking a sharp escalation in Islamabad’s onslaught on its neighbour.

Haq said the Secretary‑General recalled that under international law, patients, medical personnel, and medical facilities, including hospitals, must be respected and protected at all times.

He added that Guterres had called for an “independent and impartial investigation into the incident”.

International humanitarian law grants special protection to medical facilities and personnel and considers attacks on them to be war crimes.

Haq said that according to the World Health Organization (WHO), ten health facilities were damaged by air strikes.

He said Guterres reiterated his call for de‑escalation and the immediate cessation of hostilities, urging all parties to comply with their obligations under international law, including the protection of civilians.

Haq added that the Secretary‑General welcomed the temporary cessation of hostilities agreed to by Pakistan and Afghanistan for Eid and hoped it would be extended.

The spokesperson listed the wide‑ranging devastation in Afghanistan resulting from Pakistan’s attacks, based on assessments by UN agencies.

Between March 6 and Tuesday, air strikes and cross‑border attacks have impacted at least ten provinces, including Kabul, Haq said.

UN partners report that 115,000 people have been forced to flee, and more than 300 shelters have been destroyed or damaged. About 160,000 people are facing hunger, he added.

--IANS

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