Militants exploit Pakistani flood crisis

PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug. 23 (UPI) -- Pakistani militants are taking advantage of the catastrophe brought on by widespread flooding throughout the country, a provincial official said.

Monsoon rains triggered massive flooding in Pakistan, leaving nearly 20 percent of the country under water.

Mian Iftikhar Hussain, the information minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, warned that militants were taking advantage of the catastrophe, Pakistani newspaper The New International reports.

"Terrorists did not spare a moment in exploiting the situation in their favor even at a time when hundreds of thousands of people had been displaced, properties worth (millions of dollars) were damaged along with loss of hundreds of precious lives," he was quoted as saying.

His warnings came as UNICEF described the level of devastation in Pakistan as "massive." UNICEF said there was a "serious" shortfall in international aid for the flood relief, warning that its operations in Pakistan were limited by the lack of funding.

"Unless the world responds immediately, more and more of the 3.5 million children affected by the floods will be at risk of contracting deadly water-borne diseases like dysentery, diarrhea and cholera," the agency warned in a statement.

Flooding in Pakistan has killed more than 1,700 people and affected 20 million.