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Pakistani airstrikes targeted Kabul on March 16-17, 2026, with the Taliban claiming the attacks hit a drug users rehabilitation hospital and residential areas.
Smoke, debris, and anti-aircraft fire were captured in dramatic images by Reuters photographers.
The strikes drew widespread attention as Taliban soldiers and civilians gathered at the destroyed sites, marking a significant escalation in Pakistan-Afghanistan tensions.
IMAGE: Smoke rises after an explosion in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike in Kabul, March 16, 2026. Photograph: Sayed Hassib/Reuters
IMAGE: Tracers from anti-aircraft fire after an explosion in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike in Kabul, March 16, 2026. Photograph: Sayed Hassib/Reuters
IMAGE: Debris lies on the ground following an air strike by Pakistan on a drug users rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, March 16, 2026. Photograph: Tolo News Handout via X/Handout via Reuters
Key Points
- March 16-17, 2026, marking a major cross-border escalation.
- A drug rehabilitation hospital and residential areas in Kabul were targeted.
IMAGE: People gather near the site of an air strike by Pakistan on a drug users rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, March 16, 2026. Photograph: Tolo News Handout via X/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Smoke rises following an air strike by Pakistan on a drug users rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, March 16, 2026. Photograph: Tolo News Handout via X/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: People stand next to a drug users rehabilitation hospital destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike in Kabul, March 17, 2026. Photograph: Sayed Hassib/Reuters
IMAGE: The site of a drug users rehabilitation hospital destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike in Kabul, March 17, 2026. Photograph: Sayed Hassib/Reuters
IMAGE: Debris lies at the site of a drug users rehabilitation hospital destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike in Kabul, March 17, 2026. Photograph: Yunus Yawar/Reuters
IMAGE: A Taliban soldier walks at the site of a drug users rehabilitation hospital destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike in Kabul, March 17, 2026. Photograph: Yunus Yawar/Reuters
IMAGE: Taliban soldiers stand outside a drug users rehabilitation hospital destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike, in Kabul, March 17, 2026. Photograph: Sayed Hassib/Reuters
Photographs curated by Anant Salvi/Rediff
Feature Presentation: Manisha Kotian/Rediff
