At least 24 people are confirmed dead while 16 others were injured after militants attacked a maternity ward in the Dasht-e-Barchi hospital of Kabul, Afghanistan. The Afghan Ministry of Health alongside local media say that among the victims are mothers, newborns, and nurses, and that the maternity ward was run by international medical charity Médecins sans Frontières (MSF).

The attack started at about 10:00 local time, when three gunmen reportedly disguised as police officers entered the building and opened fire indiscriminately. The attackers were all killed by security personnel as Afghan special forces rescued over 100 people from within the building. As of now, no person or group has claimed responsibility over the attack, and while the Taliban deny involvement, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani ordered the resumption of offensive operations against the Taliban and other militant group including the Islamic State group. He accused militants for failing to respond for repeated calls for violence reduction.

Meanwhile, United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that "any attack on innocents is unforgivable, but to attack infants and women in labor... is an act of sheer evil".

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