PM Shehbaz assures Sri Lanka of help after cyclone wreaks havoc

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday chaired a review meeting on Pakistan’s relief operations in parts of Sri Lanka affected by the devastating cyclone “Ditwah.”

During the meeting, the prime minister said that Pakistan stood by the government and people of Sri Lanka in this difficult time. Expressing sorrow over the loss of precious lives in Sri Lanka, Sharif directed the relevant institutions to provide full assistance regarding the relief operations in Sri Lanka.

After the search and rescue phase, Pakistan will also play an active role in the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the affected areas, the prime minister said. The meeting was briefed on Pakistan’s ongoing relief operations in the cyclone-hit areas of Sri Lanka.

According to the briefing, Pakistan’s Urban Search and Rescue team will depart for Sri Lanka tomorrow. Additional relief supplies will also be sent tomorrow via a commercial cargo ship, the briefing added. The meeting was informed that Pakistan Navy’s ship Saif, which was deployed in Sri Lanka, was actively engaged in relief activities for the flood-affected people. It was also briefed that a helicopter onboard the Pakistan Navy ship had rescued a family that had been stranded for five days in Sri Lanka.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Ahad Khan Cheema, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi, the NDMA Chairman, and other senior government officials.