The Joint Operations Command of the UAE Ministry of Defence is continuing its humanitarian operations in Pakistan, through the launch of a second airlift of humanitarian aid from the UAE.

On 29 August, the Ministry - represented by the Joint Operations Command - has begun operating an air bridge to transport humanitarian aid provided by the UAE to Pakistan.

The first relief aid included shelter materials, humanitarian needs, food and medical parcels for those affected by torrential rains and floods.

The second batch also included further relief supplies, shelter material, humanitarian aid, food and medications for people affected by the floods that hit the country.

The humanitarian aid was dispatched as per the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to support flood-hit Pakistan, UAE national news agency WAM reported.

The UAE Armed Forces have dedicated military aircraft to transport humanitarian aid on account of the competitive edge they have gained in transporting relief material regionally and internationally.

The provision of the UAE aid falls under the Article No.9 of the ‘UAE’s Principles of the 50’, which considers foreign humanitarian aid an integral part of the country’s ethical commitment toward friendly countries.

Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al Zaabi, UAE Ambassador to Pakistan, said the move highlights the strength of relations between the two countries and that the UAE has contributed over the past years to alleviating the severity of many humanitarian crises that Pakistan witnessed, especially those related to natural disasters.

Al Zaabi stressed that the Emirati humanitarian support extends to provide a helping hand to all affected communities around the world, based on the global humanitarian role of the UAE, whose principles were laid down by the Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

Meanwhile, the death toll of Pakistan’s catastrophic flooding is rising steadily as the cash-strapped country struggles to rescue and care for millions of people displaced by the surging waters, the DPA reported.

On 31 August, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said that 1,162 people, including 384 children and 231 women, had died due to flooding since mid-June. The numbers are expected to further increase in the coming days. More than 33 million people in some 116 of Pakistan’s 160 administrative districts have been affected by the floods, with at least 72 districts being declared disaster areas.

Hundreds of thousands of people are currently living without food, clean water, shelter and basic medicines.

The floods inundated over 2 million acres of agricultural land, destroying crops of cotton, rice, dates, tomato, chilli and other vegetables.

On Tuesday, the United Nations issued a flash appeal for $160 million in emergency aid to help Pakistan.