(BBC News with David Austin.)

(The humanitarian catastrophe in Pakistan, where a fifth of) the country is flooded, has led to renewed calls for help from the government in Islamabad. The Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told the BBC the disaster was too great for Pakistan to handle alone, and an international failure to get immediate aid to those in need could leave millions to starve. He also warned of the activities of charities linked to militant groups who were trying to exploit the situation.

“When people are suffering, they do not differentiate from where help is coming. If a person is hungry, if a person is thirsty, and you provide water, he will not ask you whether you are a moderate or an extremist. He will grab that water from you and save himself and his children who are starving. So we have to be aware of this challenge.”

The United Nations has warned that up to 3.5 million children are at risk from waterborne diseases. It says a boost in funding is urgently needed to get safe drinking water to 6 million children.