Human Rights Watch: Pakistan's March 16 Omid Center Airstrike Was Unlawful and Possibly a War Crime

Human Rights Watch published a detailed investigative report on March 27 declaring Pakistan's March 16 airstrike on the Omid Drug Rehabilitation Center in Kabul 'unlawful' and a possible war crime under international humanitarian law. The report, based on survivor testimonies, satellite imagery, and field investigations, found no credible evidence the facility served military purposes. HRW cited 143+ confirmed deaths — mostly patients — and called on Pakistan to conduct an independent investigation and hold those responsible accountable. The report stated that under international law, targeting a medical facility or a facility used to treat civilian patients without adequate precautions constitutes a violation of the laws of war, and that the scale of civilian casualties suggests a failure to apply proportionality. Pakistan disputed HRW's findings, repeating claims that TTP commanders were present at the facility. The report drew renewed international condemnation.