ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar has expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives and destruction caused by recent heavy rains and flash floods in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and northern areas of Pakistan.
In a statement issued by the Foreign Office on Saturday, Dar said he has cancelled his visit to the United Kingdom to remain in the country and focus on national relief efforts.
He said the government is mobilising all available resources to provide assistance to affected people and carry out rescue operations. Federal and provincial authorities, the armed forces, and local administrations are working tirelessly to reach the affected areas and ensure the safety of citizens.
The Foreign Minister noted that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has already chaired an emergency meeting, where the government reviewed immediate needs and planned long-term rehabilitation of flood-hit regions.
Dar said that apart from scheduled official engagements in the UK with Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, Commonwealth Secretary-General Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hamish Falconer, and members of the House of Commons and House of Lords, he has also cancelled a planned meeting with the British Pakistani community.
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He said the decision was made to express solidarity with victims’ families and to give full attention to ongoing national relief and recovery operations. He also apologised to the organisers of the community event.
Dar appealed to all Pakistanis, at home and abroad, to remember the affected families in their prayers and to contribute to relief efforts in whatever capacity possible.
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