India on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Pakistan at the UN Security Council, accusing Islamabad of having a “long record of genocide” and supporting cross-border violence that has claimed civilian lives in Afghanistan.
“It is hypocritical for us to embrace the lofty principles of international law while targeting innocent civilians in the dark,” said Harish Parvathanini, Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations.
The response came during the UN Security Council’s annual open debate on “Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict”, after the representative of Pakistan raised the issue of Jammu and Kashmir.
India cites UN mission report on civilian casualties
The Indian envoy referred to the findings of the UN Assistance Mission, saying the mission documented the killing and injury of 750 civilians in Afghanistan in the first three months of 2026 due to “cross-border armed violence committed by Pakistani military forces,” most of them due to air strikes, news agency ANI reported.
He added that the United Nations body attributed 94 out of 95 incidents resulting in civilian casualties to Pakistani security forces.
“Barbaric air strike” on Kabul hospital
The envoy also accused Pakistan of carrying out an airstrike on the Umid addiction treatment hospital in Kabul during Ramadan earlier this year.
He said: “The world has not forgotten that during the holy month of Ramadan in March of this year, at a time of peace, reflection and compassion, Pakistan launched a barbaric air strike on the Umid addiction treatment hospital in Kabul.”
He described the attack as “cowardly and unreasonable,” and said that the raid resulted in the death of 269 civilians and the injury of 122 others.
“Once again, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, this cowardly and unconscionable act of violence claimed the lives of 269 civilians and injured 122 others in a facility that can in no way be justified as a military target,” the agency quoted him as saying.
Parvathanini added that the strikes occurred after Tarawih prayers, when patients were leaving the mosque.
He also raised the issue of displacement caused by cross-border violence, citing estimates by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan that more than 94,000 people have been displaced in Afghanistan.
A reference to the 1971 Bangladesh War
During his remarks, Parvathanini also referred to Pakistan’s actions during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, saying, “Pakistan sanctioned a systematic genocidal campaign of mass rape of 400,000 female citizens by its army.”
He added that Pakistan had repeatedly tried to “demonstrate its internal failures” through violence.
He added: “Without faith, law or morality, the world can see the truth of Pakistani propaganda.”
In his closing remarks, the Indian envoy said that the protection of civilians must remain central to the Security Council’s efforts to maintain international peace and security.
India has on multiple occasions countered Pakistan’s attempts to spread a false narrative in the UN Security Council. Earlier in January, Parvathanini had strongly criticized Islamabad over its statements on Operation Sindoor, terming Pakistan’s claims a “false and self-serving calculation”.
At the time, Parvathanini said Pakistan continues to pursue a single-point agenda aimed at harming India and its citizens, while repeatedly misusing international platforms to target New Delhi.
(With ANI and PTI inputs)
