Floods displace nearly 250,000 people and affect 1.2 million in eastern Pakistan

NAROWAL, Pakistan (AP) — Rescuers in boats raced to reach stranded families in Pakistan’s populous eastern Punjab province Thursday, after three major rivers burst their banks because of heavy rain and the release of water from overflowing dams in neighboring India.

The floods displaced nearly 250,000 people and officials said more than 1 million people were affected, with crops and businesses destroyed and many unable to leave their homes.

At least 15 people were killed a day earlier in Gujranwala district and nearby villages, according to police. Forecasters said more rain was expected Friday, after a two-day pause, and could continue into next week.

Marriyum Aurangzeb, senior minister of Punjab province, said floods hit 1,432 villages located along the Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers, affecting about 1.2 million people and displacing 248,000 others.

Nearly 700 relief and 265 medical camps have been set up in the flood-hit areas, she said, adding that food and other essential supplies are being delivered to flood-hit areas.

Floods have killed more than 800 people in Pakistan since late June.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan is “among the countries most vulnerable to natural disasters” and ranks among the 10 most affected by climate change.

“We must keep in mind that this trend will continue in the coming years. It now depends on us how we confront this challenge,” he said after visiting flood-hit areas. Sharif announced that Pakistan would build more water storage to control future floods.

In Indian-controlled Kashmir’s Jammu region, some of the heaviest rains in decades for the month of August have wrought havoc, triggering flash floods and landslides that also hit two Hindu pilgrimage routes in the Himalayan areas.

Homes have been submerged and roads and bridges damaged, forcing Indian authorities to evacuate thousands of people living in flooded areas. At least 115 people have been killed and scores injured.

In Pakistan, it is also the first time in 38 years that the Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab rivers have been in high flood simultaneously, forcing rescue workers to intensify operations across multiple districts, according to the provincial irrigation department.

Some families said they were still waiting for government help.

“My family on the rooftop of our house waited for two days for the arrival of a boat,” said Zainab Bibi, 54, as she sat along a road surrounded by floodwater in Narowal district. She admitted to ignoring an earlier government alert because she thought floods would never hit her village, located kilometers (miles) away from the river.

Farmer Mohammad Saleem, 47, said floods from across the Indian border swept away his home and belongings before his family could escape their village in Narowal district. His 38-year-old wife, Kaneez Bibi, said the floods swept away the dowry she had prepared for their eldest daughter’s wedding planned for November.

In Pakistan's Punjab province, mass evacuations began earlier this week after heavier-than-usual monsoon rains and the release of water from overflowing dams in India triggered flash floods in low-lying border regions.

In a statement, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif credited “timely evacuations” with saving lives. She said advance preparations and the demolition of illegally-built structures along waterways had helped prevent large-scale casualties in what officials describe as the province’s worst flood emergency in decades.

“No displaced person should be without food and medical help in the flood-hit areas,” she told officials during a meeting to review the situation. “Try your best to prevent the spread of water-borne disease among the flood-affected people,” she warned.

Pakistan's Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, on a visit to the flood-hit city of Narowal, accused India of deliberately releasing excessive amounts of water from its dams without timely warnings. He said New Delhi violated a key water treaty that it suspended earlier this year after the killing of 26 tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir. India blamed Pakistan-based militants for the attack, an accusation Islamabad denied.

Iqbal said “The release of water in such an enormous volume amounts to water aggression, and India did it, and we are seeing flood devastations."

There was no immediate comment from New Delhi.

Floods in Narowal also submerged the shrine of Guru Nanak, located near the Indian border, but rescuers evacuated the staff and pilgrims quickly.

In 2022, catastrophic floods linked to climate change killed nearly 1,700 people in Pakistan.

Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Associated Press writers Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, Aijaz Hussain in Srinagar, India, and Ishfaq Hussain in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan, contributed to this report.

A resident retrieves a room cooler and other belongings from his flooded home due to rising water level in Ravi River after torrential rains at a low-lying area on the outskirts of Lahore, Pakistan, Aug. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Residents retrieve belongings from their flooded home due to rising water level in Ravi River after torrential rains at a low-lying area on the outskirts of Lahore, Pakistan, Aug. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

People look overflowing Ravi River after torrential rains on the outskirts of Lahore, Pakistan, Aug. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

A resident retrieves belongings from his flooded home due to rising water level in Ravi River after torrential rains at a low-lying area on the outskirts of Lahore, Pakistan, Aug. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

An university building is seen surrounded by floodwater after torrential rains on the outskirts of Narowal, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Jahan Zab)

Submerged home is seen after torrential rains along a highway on the outskirts of Narowal, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Jahan Zab)

The Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, a shrine of Guru Nanak Dev, is submerged after torrential rains, in Kartarpur, in Narowal district, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Jahan Zab)

People wade through a flooded area after torrential rains along a highway on the outskirts of Narowal, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/Jahan Zab)

Rescue workers evacuate villagers from a flooded area in Chango Walia village in Narowal district, Pakistan, Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

DODOMA, Tanzania (AP) — Tanzania’s president has, for the first time since the disputed October election, commented on a six-day internet shutdown as the country went through its worst postelection violence.

President Samia Suluhu Hassan on Thursday expressed “sympathy” to diplomats and foreign nationals living in the country, saying the government would strive to ensure there is never a repeat of the same.

Hassan won the October election with more than 97% of the vote after candidates from the two main opposition parties were barred from running and the country’s main opposition leader remained in prison facing treason charges.

Violence broke out on election day and went on for days as the internet was shut down amid a heavy police crackdown that left hundreds of people dead, according to rights groups.

Hassan blamed the violence on foreigners and pardoned hundreds of young people who had been arrested, saying they were acting under peer pressure.

Speaking to ambassadors, high commissioners and representatives of international organizations on Thursday in the capital, Dodoma, she sought to reassure envoys of their safety, saying the government would remain vigilant to prevent a repeat of the disruption.

“To our partners in the diplomatic community and foreigners residing here in Tanzania, I express my sincere sympathy for the uncertainty, service restrictions and internet shutdowns you experienced,” she said.

Hassan defended her administration, saying the measures were taken to preserve constitutional order and protect citizens.

“I assure you that we will remain vigilant to ensure your safety and prevent any recurrence of such experiences,” the president told diplomats on Thursday.

Tanzania has, since the October elections, established a commission of inquiry to look into the violence that left hundreds dead and property worth millions of shillings destroyed in a country that has enjoyed relative calm for decades.

Foreign observers said the election failed to meet democratic standards because key opposition figures were barred.

FILE - Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu Hassan delivers remarks during a campaign rally ahead of the general elections in Iringa, Tanzania, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo, File)