POLITICS — April 3, 2026

Taliban Official Urges Russia to Investigate Alleged Pakistani Airstrike on Kabul Drug Rehab Clinic

Suhail Shaheen, head of the Taliban's political office in Qatar, called on Russia to investigate an alleged March 16 Pakistani airstrike on a Kabul drug rehab clinic that the Taliban say killed over 400 people. Independent sources have not confirmed the attack details, while Russia has previously offered to mediate Taliban-Pakistan tensions.

The Ehtebar Desk — originates with Amu TV2 min read

Taliban Official Urges Russia to Investigate Alleged Pakistani Airstrike on Kabul Drug Rehab Clinic
Image courtesy Amu TV

Suhail Shaheen, head of the Taliban's political office in Qatar, has urged Russia to investigate an alleged Pakistani airstrike on a drug rehabilitation clinic in Kabul's Pul-e Charkhi area on March 16.

In an interview with Russia's RIA Novosti news agency, Shaheen called for a probe into the attack, which the Taliban claim killed more than 400 people at the addicts' treatment center. He also requested Russian assistance for the victims and sought to draw international attention to the incident.

The Taliban have attributed the airstrike to Pakistan. Independent sources have not confirmed the details of the attack or the reported casualty figures.

Zamir Kabulov, Russia's special representative for Afghanistan, has previously expressed concern over escalating tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan. Kabulov offered Moscow's mediation to help resolve the disputes between the two sides.

Russia has positioned itself as a potential mediator in regional conflicts involving Afghanistan, amid ongoing frictions between the Taliban administration and neighboring Pakistan.

Read the original reporting at Amu TV

Reliability assessment

Single source (Amu TV) reports direct on-record statements by named officials: Suhail Shaheen in RIA Novosti interview and prior statement by Zamir Kabulov. 'X said Y' (Shaheen's request and Taliban's claim) is concrete and attributable, even if attack details unconfirmed by independents.

The source language reads straight.

Independent web corroboration

An independent web search turned up no separate corroborating reports. Treat the account as single-sourced until more outlets pick it up.

Across the newsrooms

Filed by

Filed under

PoliticsSuhail Shaheen, Taliban, Russia, Pakistan, Kabul

Spotted an error or have more on this story? Tip the desk on Telegram → or WhatsApp →.

Reader supported

Keep Ehtebar running

Every published story uses paid tools to translate reporting, compare sources, extract claims, and produce a clearer read on Afghanistan. Reader support helps keep that work independent.

€5

helps cover daily verification runs

€15

supports a week of source comparison

€50

keeps independent analysis moving