US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the attack on the hospital ‘sheer evil’ and an ‘unconscionable assault’.
Injured men are transported on a truck to a hospital following a suicide attack at a funeral of a local police commander in Nangarhar on May 12, 2020. - Gunmen stormed a hospital on May 12 in an ongoing attack in the Afghan capital Kabul, as a suicide blast killed 15 people at a funeral in the country's restive east. (Photo by NOORULLAH SHIRZADA / AFP)
India on Tuesday strongly condemned separate terror attacks targeting a maternity hospital, a funeral and a military check post in Afghanistan, calling it a “barbaric” act against innocent people including women and children.
Militants attacked a maternity hospital in Kabul on Tuesday, killing 14 people, including two newborn babies and their mothers.
In a separate attack, a suicide bomber targeted a funeral ceremony in Nangahar province, a hotbed of the ISIS group, killing at least 24 people and injuring 68.
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“India strongly condemns the barbaric terrorist attacks against innocent civilians, including women and children, at the Dasht-e-Barchi hospital maternity ward, funeral in Nangarhar province and the Army check post in Laghman province,” the MEA said.
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Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said he was ordering the resumption of offensive operations against the Taliban and other groups. This comes after US-Afghanistan signed the peace deal earlier this year.
Ghani accused the militants of ignoring repeated calls for a reduction in violence.
A report by BBC says, the Islamic State (IS) group said it was behind the attack on a police commander’s funeral in Nangarhar, in the east of the country. It is still not clear who carried out the attack on the hospital, and the Taliban have denied any involvement.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the attack on the hospital “sheer evil” and an “unconscionable assault”. In a statement he urged the Afghan government and the Taliban to co-operate to “bring the perpetrators to justice”.
In a statement, India’s MEA said the “reprehensible” attacks, including on mothers, newly born children, nurses and mourning families are appalling and constitute crimes against humanity.
“We extend our sincerest condolences to the families of the deceased and wish speedy recovery to those injured,” the MEA said.
It said there can be no justification for such continued acts of terrorism, asserting that the perpetrators of such heinous acts and their sponsors should be held accountable and brought to justice.
“They should be forced to eradicate safe havens and sanctuaries that have abetted terrorism in the region for decades and caused immense miseries to untold number of people in the region,” the MEA said.
It said India stands in solidarity with the people, government and security forces of Afghanistan in their efforts to bring peace and stability to the nation.
“The holy month of Ramazan should be a period of fasting, prayer and reflection,” the MEA said.
“We call for an immediate cessation of terrorist violence and cooperation to deal with the humanitarian situation arising from the spread of coronavirus in Afghanistan,” it added.
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