More than 40 days after a Pakistan airstrike tore through a rehabilitation center in the east of Kabul, families of the victims say the grief has not eased, marked by empty homes, unanswered questions and the absence of loved ones who never returned.
The strike hit the Omid Rehabilitation Center in the Pul-e-Charkhi area of Kabul, a facility that housed patients undergoing rehabilitation for drug addiction. Burned walls and silent corridors remain, but for many families, the deeper loss is the relatives who never returned home.
A UNANA official has confirmed to Amu TV that the United Nations has so far verified 269 civilians killed and 122 others wounded in the strike that happened on March 16.
Among the victims was Hamid, a man who had recently completed a three-month period of treatment and returned home, according to his family. Just a week later, the family says, Taliban took him back to the same facility. The following night, the strike hit.
“He had been home for only a week,” his mother said. “He was fasting, praying, trying to rebuild his life. Then they took him back, and the next night the explosion happened. He was the breadwinner of our family.”
His brother said he identified Hamid’s body by his teeth after being allowed to view the remains.
“The condition was devastating,” he said. “His body was burned. We received him two days later and buried him on the night before Eid.”
In another case, a father identified as Wali Mohammad said his son, Fayaz, who had been admitted to the center shortly before the attack, remains missing.
“He was our only provider,” he said. “I am ill and cannot work. There is no trace of him. If he were alive, he would have come home.”
Fayaz’s mother said her 25-year-old son had been supporting the family and learning vocational skills before the attack.
“For a mother, this is unbearable,” she said. “They bombed innocent people.”
Pakistan has not publicly commented on the strike, but has claimed it has targeted Taliban military sites in the area. Residents and victims’ families have called for accountability, urging the UN and the international community to investigate the incident and determine responsibility.
Some families also criticized Taliban, saying they have failed to respond adequately or support victims.
The March 16 attack has intensified concerns about civilian protection in Afghanistan, where ongoing tensions continue to put noncombatants at risk.
The UN has repeatedly said civilians and civilian facilities must be protected under international humanitarian law.
For many families, however, the focus remains on loss — and the absence of answers.
