(FILES) This file photo taken on May 31, 2017 shows Afghan volunteers carrying the body of a resident killed in a car bomb attack to the Wazir Akbar Khan hospital in Kabul. Civilian deaths in Afghanistan hit a record high in the first half of 2017, with 1,663 killed and more than 3,500 injured, the United Nations said July 17. / AFP PHOTO / WAKIL KOHSAR
At least 35 people were killed when the Taliban attacked a hospital in central Ghor province over the weekend, a presidential spokesman said Monday.
“When the Taliban entered the hospital they killed 35, all civilians,” spokesman Shah Hussain Murtazawi said, without specifying if they were patients or staff. “This is a cruel crime against humanity.”
He did not elaborate, but unconfirmed reports Sunday claimed that the Taliban had set the hospital alight and killed those inside.
The Taliban have denied the claim, though a spokesman said that parts of the local hospital were damaged in fighting in the area.
It came as the insurgents captured Taywara district in Ghor province after days of fighting, the latest victory by the resurgent militants.
Afghan forces control 59.7 percent of the country, according to a US watchdog’s report issued in May after the winter lull in fighting, up slightly from the previous quarter.
But the insurgents have ramped up their offensive across the country since launching their so-called “spring offensive” earlier this year.
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