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Pakistan looks ‘like a sea’ after floods, PM Shehbaz says, as 18 more die

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  • Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif visits flood-hit areas in Sindh.
  • You won’t believe scale of destruction there, PM tells journalists.
  • 33 million of a population of 220 million have been affected so far.

SEHWAN: Parts of Pakistan seemed “like a sea”, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday, after visiting some of the flood-hit areas that cover as much as a third of the South Asian nation, where 18 more deaths took the toll from days of rain to 1,343.

As many as 33 million of a population of 220 million have been affected in a disaster blamed on climate change that has left hundreds of thousands homeless and caused losses of at least $10 billion, officials estimate.

“You wouldn’t believe the scale of destruction there,” PM Shehbaz told media after a visit to the southern province of Sindh. “It is water everywhere as far as you could see. It is just like a sea.”

The government, which has boosted cash handouts for flood victims to 70 billion Pakistani rupees ($313.90 million), will buy 200,000 tents to house displaced families, he added.

Receding waters threaten a new challenge in the form of water-borne infectious diseases, PM Shehbaz said.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif addresses journalists in Sindh after visiting flood-hit areas, on September 7, 2022. — Reuters
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif addresses journalists in Sindh after visiting flood-hit areas, on September 7, 2022. — Reuters

“We will need trillions of rupees to cope with this calamity.”

The United Nations has called for $160 million in aid to help the flood victims.

Many of those affected are from Sindh, where Pakistan’s largest freshwater lake is dangerously close to bursting its banks, even after having been breached in an operation that displaced 100,000 people.

National disaster officials said eight children were among the dead in the last 24 hours. The floods were brought by record monsoon rains and glacier melt in Pakistan’s northern mountains.

With more rain expected in the coming month, the situation could worsen further, a top official of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has warned.

Already, the World Health Organization has said more than 6.4 million people need humanitarian support in the flooded areas.

Residents use boats as they travel amid flood water, following rains and floods during the monsoon season in Bajara village, at the banks of Manchar lake, in Sehwan, Pakistan September 6, 2022. — Reuters
Residents use boats as they travel amid flood water, following rains and floods during the monsoon season in Bajara village, at the banks of Manchar lake, in Sehwan, Pakistan September 6, 2022. — Reuters

The raging waters have swept away 1.6 million houses, 5,735 km (3,564 miles) of transport links, 750,000 head of livestock, and swamped more than 2 million acres (809,370 hectares) of farmland.

Pakistan has received nearly 190% more rain than the 30-year average in July and August, totalling 391 mm (15.4 inches), with Sindh getting 466% more rain than the average.

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According to Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif, accusations made against Pakistan by Bushra Bibi, the spouse of the PTI founder, are vile and disgusting because Pakistan has historical relations to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

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The defense minister stated at a press conference in Islamabad that the Kingdom should not be involved in politics for selfish reasons because of our historical, religious, and economic ties with Saudi Arabia.

2.8 million Pakistanis work in Saudi Arabia and send millions of dollars in remittances, he added, adding that making unfounded accusations against the country will hurt Pakistan’s economy.

According to him, Saudi Arabia has always stood by Pakistan throughout its most trying moments, and Pakistanis have a deep affection and connection to the Kingdom.

There is a breach among PTI ranks and files, and Khawaja Asif stated that we have never witnessed such a low point in politics.

Given the gravity of the accusation, the Minister said, former Army Chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa should respond right away.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government should fight terrorism rather than target the city, he said, adding that the PTI’s demand for a demonstration on November 24 is the third strike on the federal capital.

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The Interior Ministry prohibits KP from using government machinery for PTI protests.

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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is not allowed to use the resources of the Provincial Government for a party protest, according to the Interior Ministry.

On November 24, the PTI has scheduled a protest, and Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Gandapur has declared his intention to participate.

The Federal Government arrested a number of Provincial Government officials who were ordered to participate in the violent protest in Islamabad by the PTI, and confiscated vehicles used by the KP Government against the state during the previous protest in October.

However, the Jinnah Supermarket Traders Union has petitioned the Islamabad High Court to halt the PTI demonstration in the capital and deem it unlawful.

In the petition, the head of the Traders Union has asked the court to rule that the PTI protest violates fundamental human rights by preventing companies from operating and removing the public’s ability to visit stores for necessities.

The petition asked the high court to protect the capital’s workers and PTI founder from unlawful protests.

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Planning Minister: The Nation Is Back on Track for Development

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Ahsan Iqbal, the Federal Minister for Planning and Development, asserts that the country’s youth are its future and that Pakistan has made great strides over the past 77 years, becoming the sixth nuclear state in the world today.

Speaking at a ceremony in Islamabad, Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal stated that inconsistent policies have an impact on the development process.

According to Ahsan Iqbal, the CPEC got Pakistan on its path to growth, and the government is currently moving on with phase two of the project.

The country was in danger of defaulting, but the government has put it back on course, he said.

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