KABUL, Afghanistan — A United States airstrike appears to have badly damaged the hospital run by Doctors Without Borders in the Afghan city of Kunduz early Saturday, killing at least three people and wounding dozens, including members of the hospital staff.
The United States military, in a statement, confirmed the 2:15 a.m. airstrike, saying it had been targeting individuals “who were threatening the force” and that “there may have been collateral damage to a nearby medical facility.”
It was not clear where in the hospital compound most of the damage was done. Doctors Without Borders said at least three members of its staff had been killed and its facility was “very badly damaged.”
“We are deeply shocked by the attack, the killing of our staff and patients and the heavy toll it has inflicted on health care in Kunduz,” the group said in a statement.
The aid group said 105 patients and caretakers were at the hospital, along with 80 staff members.
The hospital was “partially destroyed” in the bombing, and 30 people were “unaccounted for,” the group said.
The United States military, in a statement, confirmed the 2:15 a.m. airstrike, saying it had been targeting individuals “who were threatening the force” and that “there may have been collateral damage to a nearby medical facility.”
It was not clear where in the hospital compound most of the damage was done. Doctors Without Borders said at least three members of its staff had been killed and its facility was “very badly damaged.”
“We are deeply shocked by the attack, the killing of our staff and patients and the heavy toll it has inflicted on health care in Kunduz,” the group said in a statement.
The aid group said 105 patients and caretakers were at the hospital, along with 80 staff members.
The hospital was “partially destroyed” in the bombing, and 30 people were “unaccounted for,” the group said.