Pakistan hit by floods as monsoon rains devastate provinces

Rescue and relief efforts continued across Pakistan as days of heavy monsoon rains triggered widespread floods and landslides, killing hundreds, displacing tens of thousands, and crippling infrastructure from remote valleys to the nation’s urban centers. Officials warned that the downpours could persist through the coming days, compounding an already severe humanitarian crisis and intensifying demands for rapid and coordinated action at both provincial and federal levels.

In the northwest, the hardest-hit province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bore the brunt of the toll. Districts such as Buner, Swat, Shangla, and Battagram faced massive destruction as cloudbursts and floodwaters swept away homes, crops, and roads. Rescue teams, including thousands of local volunteers and army units, pressed on with search and relief operations, sometimes under difficult conditions as new rain intensified mud and debris. Officials reported hundreds of deaths in KP alone and said hundreds more remained missing, with some communities effectively cut off and dependent on helicopters and boats for access. The scale of damage prompted authorities to declare disaster-hit areas and to mobilize funds for...