Hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis ordered to evacuate their homes

Hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis have been ordered to evacuate their homes as flood waters threaten several cities in the south of the country. The flood surge, after weeks of monsoon rains, has breached embankments on the Indus River, inundating villages and swamping vast areas of farmland. Parts of Pakistan have been described as resembling an inland sea. After threats from Pakistan’s Taliban, the UN is reviewing security for its aid workers helping flood victims. A US official said militants planned to attack foreigners delivering aid to the millions of people affected by the devastating floods. One Taliban spokesman told Associated Press that the presence of foreign aid workers was unacceptable. However, there have been no attacks since the humanitarian crisis unfolded. The UN says more than 17 million people have been affected by the floods, and about 1.2 million homes have been destroyed, leaving five million people homeless. The floods started in the mountainous north and have steadily surged south, damaging an estimated 3.2 million hectares of farmland – about 14% of Pakistan’s land under cultivation. The remaining residents of Shahdadkot, originally a town of 300,000 people, have been warned to leave as floodwaters approach. Many people have already left the town, in northern Sindh province.

No related posts.