UN slams 'inexcusable' Afghan hospital air strike that kills 19

October 04, 2015 00:01

A suspected US air strike on a hospital killed 19 people on Saturdayin the Afghan city of Kunduz, medical charity MSF said, a bombardment that the UN condemned as "inexcusable, and possibly even criminal".

Dozens more were seriously wounded at the facility, a key lifeline that has been running "beyond capacity" during fighting that saw the Taliban seize control of the northern provincial capital for several days. The charity said the bombing continued for more than 30 minutes after American and Afghan military officials were first alerted they were being hit.

NATO conceded US forces may have been behind the strike but has not so far commented on the specific claims of MSF, which has long treated the war-wounded from all sides of the conflict.

The incident has renewed concerns about the use of US air strikes in Afghanistan, a deeply contentious issue in the 14-year campaign against Taliban insurgents. UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein called for a full and transparent probe, noting that, "if established as deliberate in a court of law, an air strike on a hospital may amount to a war crime."

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