Pakistan floods: 800,000 can only be reached by air

Some 800,000 people have been cut off by floods in Pakistan and can only be reached by air, according to the United Nations.

by Rob Crilly in Islamabad and Ashfaq Yusufzai in Peshawar, The Telgraph/UK, Aug 25, 2010

Pakistani flood affected villagers receive food delivered by an army helicopter in the outskirts of Rajampur
Pakistani flood affected villagers receive food delivered by an army helicopter in the outskirts of Rajampur Photo: AFP
Flood survivors use a camel cart to reach areas in Taunsa near Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan
Flood survivors use a camel cart to reach areas in Taunsa near Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan Photo: AP
Pakistan closes militant-run aid camps
A Pakistani boy swims as he tries to keep his food dry in a flooded area near Basira village in Punjab Photo: AFP/GETTY

The UN added that it needs at least 40 more helicopters to ferry lifesaving aid to increasingly desperate people. More than 1,500 people have been killed as floods swept from north to south across the country, while more than 17 million have been affected.

The flood chaos has raised concerns that the humanitarian crisis is being exploited by Islamist militants.

At least 16 aid camps run by militant Islamist groups sites have been shut according to the authorities in the northwestern region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, as Islamabad to stop the spread of extremists.

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