ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Shiite pilgrims will not be able to individually travel to Iraq from next year to visit holy sites, the country’s interior minister announced on Monday, following his meeting with counterparts from Iran and Iraq.

Naqvi said this after attending a tri-nation conference, requested by Islamabad, in Tehran to discuss issues relating to thousands of Pakistani Shiite Muslims, who travel annually to Iran and Iraq.

The conference concluded with an agreement to establish a joint working group to oversee coordination and operational matters, ensuring safe and seamless travel of the pilgrims to the two countries.

“From January 1, 2026, we will not be allowing any Pakistani to leave for Iraq without zaireen [pilgrims] group organizer, which means that we will register people who will be allowed to take the groups to Iraq,” Naqvi said in televised comments after the conference.

Last month, Pakistan evacuated over 260 nationals from Iraq and another 450 Pakistanis who had been stranded in Iran during the Tehran-Israeli conflict, according to the country’s foreign ministry. There was no confirmation of the number of evacuees who had traveled legally and those who had been staying in the two countries illegally.

The group organizers will be bound to bring back all pilgrims going with them, according to the Pakistani interior minister. The move is aimed at discouraging overstay of Pakistani pilgrims in Iraq.

“The people who are overstaying there, the people who have started working there, we need to stop this,” Naqvi said, adding they would need support from Iran and Iraq to implement the decision.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Monday warned of another wet spell in the country from July 15 till July 17, with the death toll from monsoon rain-floods rising to 111 since June 26.

The toll includes 40 deaths in Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, followed by 37 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), 17 in Sindh, 16 in Balochistan and one fatality in Azad Kashmir, according to official figures. Another 212 people have been injured in rain-related incidents.

In its fresh alert, the disaster authority said a low-pressure area, presently located over India’s Madhya Pradesh state, is likely to affect Pakistan in the next 24 to 72 hours.

“Under the influence of this weather system, strong monsoon currents are expected to penetrate central and upper parts [of Pakistan],” it said. “A westerly wave is also present over upper parts of the country.”

The system may result in heavy rains and flash floods in Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Murree, Galiyat, Dera Ghazi Khan and northeastern Punjab.

“Rains may trigger landslides in Murree and hilly areas,” the NDMA said. “Heavy downpour may cause urban flooding in low-lying areas of Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Lahore, Sialkot and Faisalabad.”

It called on provincial and district administrations to prepare emergency response teams, ensure the availability of rescue machinery and clear drainage systems in urban areas.

“Avoid outdoor exposure in rains and windy weather,” the authority said. “Tourists and travelers visiting mountainous areas are advised to remain cautious of flash floods, avalanche, glaciers, landslides, rock fall/tree fall, derbies/mud flow during the period.”

Monsoon season brings South Asia 70 to 80 percent of its annual rainfall, arriving in early June in India and late June in Pakistan, and lasting through until September.

The annual rains are vital for agriculture and food security, and the livelihoods of millions of farmers. But the season brings with it flooding, landslides and causes buildings to collapse.

South Asia is getting hotter and in recent years has seen shifting weather patterns, but scientists are unclear on how exactly a warming planet is affecting the highly complex monsoon.

Pakistan is one of the world’s most vulnerable countries to the effects of climate change, and its 240 million residents are facing extreme weather events with increasing frequency.

In 2022, unprecedented monsoon floods submerged a third of Pakistan and killed 1,700 people, with some areas yet to recover from the damage. In May, at least 32 people were killed in severe storms, including strong hailstorms.