Afghan Officials Say at Least 50 Died in Attack on Hospital

Afghan Officials Say at Least 50 Died in Attack on Hospital
The news conference was called after Afghan news reports and social media accounts suggested
that the casualty toll was actually in the hundreds; that three hospitalized Afghan generals were among those killed by the attackers; and that the minister of defense, Abdullah Habibi, had personally signed the V.I.P.
By ROD NORDLAND and JAWAD SUKHANYARMARCH 15, 2017
KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghan officials sharply increased the tally of dead in an attack last week on a military hospital, saying Wednesday
that at least 50 people, including patients and staff members, were killed.
The reports seemed to be fueled partly by contradictory government claims immediately after the attack
that only two people had died, a number many officials stuck to even after personnel at the Ministry of Defense confirmed that at least 31 people were dead.
In addition, 24 people have been arrested in connection with the March 8 attack, including Afghan generals, according
to Lt. Gen. Helaludin Helal, the country’s deputy minister of defense for strategic and intelligence affairs.
He confirmed that the attackers brought their vehicle, a red Toyota Corolla, into the hospital compound in Kabul using an official pass, which he described as "fake." One of the five attackers
detonated their explosives-laden car with a remote-controlled device as they entered the hospital grounds dressed in white medical clothing, according to the official accounts.
Government officials, however, have blamed the Taliban, and General Helal said "we cannot deny"
that one of the attackers shouted, "Long live the Taliban." The Islamic State, also known as ISIS, has a relatively small number of fighters in Afghanistan, mostly in the eastern province of Nangarhar.