In hottest city on Earth, mothers bear brunt of climate change

Rabia fans her son, Manish Kumar, 10, as he lies in bed after having a bladder stone removed, during a heatwave, at Civil Hospital, Jacobabad, Pakistan, May 15, 2022. (REUTERS)
Short Url
Updated 14 June 2022
Follow

In hottest city on Earth, mothers bear brunt of climate change

  • Climate change poses significant threat to unempowered women in rural areas and urban slums
  • Studies show global temperatures have risen by about 1.2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels

JACOBABAD, Pakistan: Heavily pregnant Sonari toils under the burning sun in fields dotted with bright yellow melons in Jacobabad, which last month became the hottest city on Earth.
Her 17-year-old neighbor Waderi, who gave birth a few weeks ago, is back working in temperatures that can exceed 50 Celsius (122 Fahrenheit), with her newborn lying on a blanket in the shade nearby so she can feed him when he cries.
“When the heat is coming and we’re pregnant, we feel stressed,” said Sonari, who is in her mid-20s.
These women in southern Pakistan and millions like them around the world are at the searing edge of climate change.
Pregnant women exposed to heat for prolonged periods of time have a higher risk of suffering complications, an analysis of 70 studies conducted since the mid-1990s on the issue found.
For every 1 degree Celsius in temperature rise, the number of stillbirths and premature deliveries increases by about 5 percent, according to the meta-analysis Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education at Columbia University, which was carried out by several research institutions globally and published in the British Medical Journal in September 2020.
Cecilia Sorensen, director of the Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education at Columbia University, said the unfolding impact of global warming on the health of women was “highly underdocumented,” partly because extreme heat tended to exacerbate other conditions.
“We’re not associating health impacts on women and often times it’s because we’re not collecting data on it,” she said. “And often women in poverty are not seeking medical care.”
“Heat is a super big deal for pregnant women.”




Farmer Waderi, 17, fans her one-month-old son Amar Kumar during a heatwave, at home, on the outskirts of Jacobabad, Pakistan, May 17, 2022. (REUTERS)

Women are especially vulnerable to rising temperatures in poor countries on the frontlines of climate change because many have little choice but to work through their pregnancies and soon after giving birth, according to interviews with more than a dozen female residents in the Jacobabad area as well as half a dozen development and human rights experts.
Further adding to the risks, women in socially conservative Pakistan — and many other places — typically cook the family meals over hot stoves or open fires, often in cramped rooms with no ventilation or cooling.
“If you’re inside cooking next to a hot open fire you have that burden of that heat in addition to the ambient heat which makes things that much more dangerous,” Sorensen added.
EXTREME HUMID HEAT EVENTS
South Asia has suffered unseasonably hot temperatures in recent months. An extreme heatwave that scorched Pakistan and India in April was 30 times more likely to happen due to climate change, according to scientists at World Weather Attribution, an international research collaboration. Global temperatures have risen by about 1.2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
As temperatures continue rising, extreme heatwaves are only expected to increase.
Jacobabad’s roughly 200,000 residents are well aware of their reputation as one of the world’s hottest cities.
“If we go to hell, we’ll take a blanket,” is a common joke told in the area.
Few places are more punishing. Last month, temperatures hit 51 Celsius (124 Fahrenheit) on May 14, which local meteorological officials said was highly unusual for that time of year. Tropical rains can also conspire with warm winds from the Arabian Sea to drive up humidity later in the year.




Local residents eat their lunch of curry and flatbread, during a heatwave, at a cafe in Jacobabad, Pakistan May 14, 2022. (REUTERS)

The more humid it is, the harder it is for people to cool down via sweating. Such conditions are measured by “wet bulb temperatures,” taken by a thermometer wrapped in a wet cloth. Wet bulb temperatures of 35C or higher are considered the limit to human survival.
Jacobabad has crossed that threshold at least twice since 2010, according to regional weather data. And, globally, such “extreme humid heat events” have more than doubled in frequency in the last four decades, according to a May 2020 study in the journal Science.




Biban, a pregnant farmer, clears unwanted grass at a muskmelon farm, during a heatwave, on the outskirts of Jacobabad, Pakistan, May 17, 2022. (REUTERS)

Sonari, who is in her 20s, and Waderi work alongside about a dozen other women, several of them pregnant, in the melon fields about 10 km from Jacobabad’s center.
They begin work each day at 6 a.m. with a short afternoon break for housework and cooking before returning to the field to work until sundown. They describe leg pains, fainting episodes and discomfort while breastfeeding.
“It feels like no one sees them, no one cares about them,” aid worker Liza Khan said more broadly about the plight facing many women in Jacobabad and the wider Sindh region which straddles the border of Pakistan and India.




Liza Khan, 22, project manager at the Community Development Foundation (CDF), walks to her office in Jacobabad, Pakistan, May 18, 2022. (REUTERS)

Khan’s phone rings constantly as she drives to one of three heatstroke response centers she has helped set up in recent weeks as part of her work with a non-profit group called the Community Development Foundation.
With a finance degree, Khan has lived in cooler cities across Pakistan but returned to her hometown because she wanted to be a voice for women in the conservative area.
“Nowadays I’m working 24/7,” said the 22-year-old, adding that her organization was finding the impact of extreme heat increasingly intertwining with other social and health issues affecting women.
THE FRONTLINES OF SUFFERING
The harsh conditions facing many women were brought into tragic focus on May 14, the day temperatures in Jacobabad hit 51 C, making it the world’s hottest city at that time.
Nazia, a young mother of five, was preparing lunch for her visiting cousins. But with no air conditioning or fan in her kitchen, she collapsed and was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead from a suspected heat stroke
District health officials did not answer requests for comment about Jacobabad’s record of heat-related deaths in recent years, or more specifically about Nazia’s case.
Her body was taken the following day to her ancestral village to be buried and her children, the youngest a one-year-old who was still breastfeeding, regularly cry for their mother, a relative said.
Widespread poverty and frequent power cuts mean many people can’t afford or use air conditioning or at times even a fan to cool down.




Kaloo, 60, repairs a fan with a spoon while at work in a cafe, during a heatwave, in Jacobabad, Pakistan May 14, 2022. (REUTERS)

Potential strategies recommended by experts include providing clean-energy stoves to replace open-fire cooking, offering women’s medical and social services during early morning or evening hours when it is cooler and replacing tin roofs with cooler material in white to reflect solar radiation away from the home.
Climate Change Minister Sherry Rehman told Reuters that women were likely bear the brunt of rising temperatures as they continued to scorch the country, adding that climate change policies in the future needed to address the specific needs of women.
“A megatrend like climate change ... poses a significant threat to the well-being of unempowered women in rural areas and urban slums,” she added. “Pakistani women, especially on the margins, will be impacted the most.”
Some in Jacobabad find it galling that Pakistan is responsible for just a fraction of the greenhouse gases released in the industrial era and now warming the atmosphere.
“We are not contributing to the worsening, but we are on the frontlines as far as suffering is concerned,” said Hafeez Siyal, the city’s deputy commissioner.
NO WATER, NO POWER, WE PRAY
In a residential neighborhood of the city, a donkey-drawn cart stacked with blue plastic jerrycans stops near the entrance to warren-like lanes leading to a cluster of homes. The cart’s driver runs back and forth delivering 20-liter containers of water from one of a few dozen private pumps around the city.
Most residents of Jacobabad rely on such water deliveries, which can cost between a fifth and an eighth of a household’s meagre income. Still, it’s often not enough, and some families are forced to ration.
For young mother Razia, the sound of her six-month-old Tamanna crying in the afternoon heat was enough to persuade her to pour some of her precious water over the baby. She then sat Tamanna in front of a fan, and the child was visibly calmer, playing with her mother’s scarf.




Women and children wash themselves after work at a muskmelon farm, during a heatwave, at a hand pump on the outskirts of Jacobabad, Pakistan, May 17, 2022. (REUTERS)

Local officials said water shortages were partly due to electricity cuts, which mean water cannot be filtered and sent via pipes throughout the city. There are also severe water shortages across Sindh, with climate change minister Rehman flagging shortfalls of up to 60 percent of what is needed in the province’s key dams and canals.
Rubina, Razia’s neighbor, fried onions and okra over an open fire, explaining she usually felt dizzy in the heat and tried to soak herself in water each time she cooked to prevent herself from fainting.
There was not always enough water to do so, though.
“Most of the time, it ends before it’s time to buy more and we must wait,” Rubina said as she closely supervised her children and grandchildren sharing a cup of water. “On the hot days with no water, no electricity we wake up and the only thing we do is pray to God.”


Pakistan PM says ceasefire with India offers chance to resolve Kashmir, water issues

Updated 10 May 2025
Follow

Pakistan PM says ceasefire with India offers chance to resolve Kashmir, water issues

  • Shehbaz Sharif thanks President Trump, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for de-escalation efforts
  • Pakistan’s foreign office denies allegations of ceasefire violation, says Islamabad implementing the deal

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Saturday Pakistan had agreed to a ceasefire with India in the hope that it would open the door to resolving longstanding disputes between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, including the Kashmir conflict and the division of river waters.

His remarks came hours after the United States helped broker a ceasefire between the two South Asian rivals following intense missile and drone exchanges, which began after a gun attack in Pahalgam, a tourist resort in Indian-administered Kashmir, that killed 26 people.

India blamed Pakistan for the incident despite Islamabad’s rejection of the allegation, and launched retaliatory strikes on what it called “terrorist infrastructure.” It also took other retaliatory actions, including suspension of a decades-old river water sharing treaty with lower riparian Pakistan.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said both countries had agreed to a ceasefire and would begin talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral venue.

“As a responsible state, we have responded positively to the ceasefire proposal in the interest of global and regional peace, and for the millions of people living in the region,” Sharif said in a televised address to the nation.

“We firmly believe that all outstanding issues, including the dispute over Jammu and Kashmir and the distribution of water resources, should be resolved through peaceful dialogue in accordance with the principles of justice,” he added.

Earlier in the day, the Indian foreign secretary said the two countries’ military operations chiefs had spoken to each other and agreed that all fighting would stop at 5 p.m. Indian time (1130 GMT), without using the word “ceasefire.” The MO chiefs would next speak on May 12, he added.

Within hours, however, India accused Islamabad of violating the ceasefire by targeting Srinagar city in Kashmir.

Pakistan’s Information Minister Ata Tarar denied the allegation, saying people in his country were celebrating the end of the conflict and the government remained committed to the agreement.

The foreign office of Pakistan also maintained the country remained committed to the “faithful implementation” of the ceasefire.

“Notwithstanding the violations being committed by India in some areas, our forces are handling the situation with responsibility and restraint,” it said in a statement.

“We believe that any issues in smooth implementation of the ceasefire should be addressed through communication at appropriate levels,” it continued. “The troops on ground should also exercise restraint.”

Pakistan’s Deputy Interior Minister Talal Chaudhry told Arab News, “the response would be harsh” if India defied the ceasefire agreement.

Meanwhile, the prime minister said in his address that India had used the Pahalgam incident “as a pretext” to impose war on Pakistan.

“In its arrogance, the enemy made a failed attempt to violate our borders,” he said. “We decided to respond to the enemy in the language it understands best.”

Sharif also thanked US President Donald Trump, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed for their role in helping de-escalate the situation.


Saudi Arabia, other nations welcome news of India-Pakistan ceasefire

Updated 10 May 2025
Follow

Saudi Arabia, other nations welcome news of India-Pakistan ceasefire

  • Pakistan appreciates Saudi Arabia’s positive role in promoting regional peace and stability
  • Western powers say ‘dialogue is key,’ hoping both sides to respect the ceasefire agreement

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia, China, the United Arab Emirates, and several other countries on Saturday welcomed the ceasefire understanding between Pakistan and India, following a week of military escalation that raised fears of a full-blown war between the two South Asian neighbors.

The ceasefire, brokered with US support after missile and drone exchanges between the nuclear-armed neighbors, has drawn a wave of diplomatic endorsements after many countries called for restraint and renewed dialogue.

Pakistan has credited the international community for playing a constructive role in defusing tensions, while also emphasizing its own measured response to what it described as Indian aggression.

“Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar @MIshaqDar50, received a call from the Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Adel Aljubeir @AdelAljubeir, who welcomed the ceasefire understanding between

Pakistan and India,” Pakistan’s foreign office said in a post on social media platform X.

“DPM appreciated Saudi Arabia’s positive and constructive role in promoting peace & security in South Asia,” it added.

Dar also spoke with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, briefing him on the regional situation following Indian attacks and Islamabad’s “carefully calibrated response.”

According to Pakistan’s foreign office, Wang acknowledged Pakistan’s restraint and described its actions as responsible under challenging circumstances.

China reaffirmed its support for Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and pledged continued coordination.

The UAE also expressed support for the ceasefire.

In a separate call, UAE Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed welcomed the development, and Dar commended the Gulf state’s diplomatic engagement in fostering regional peace.

Germany’s foreign office described the ceasefire as a “first, important step out of the escalation spiral” and stressed the importance of dialogue.

“Dialogue is key,” it said. “The German government has been in contact with both sides in the past days.”

Kaja Kallas, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, said she had spoken with both Indian and Pakistani foreign ministers and called the truce a “vital step toward de-escalation.”

“All efforts must be made to ensure it is respected,” she wrote on X, reaffirming the EU’s commitment to peace, stability and counter-terrorism in the region.

The flare-up between Pakistan and India, one of the most serious in recent years, followed a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir last month and escalated into missile strikes, drone attacks and cross-border fire over the past week.

The ceasefire, announced Saturday, has temporarily halted hostilities, with both sides trading blame for the conflict.


Pakistan, China, Afghanistan vow cooperation on security and economy at Kabul meeting

Updated 10 May 2025
Follow

Pakistan, China, Afghanistan vow cooperation on security and economy at Kabul meeting

  • Representatives of the three countries met under a trilateral mechanism launched in 2017
  • They discussed the forthcoming foreign ministers’ conference expected to take place in Kabul

PESHAWAR: A trilateral meeting hosted by Afghanistan in Kabul on Saturday focused on economic and security outlook of the region, according to Pakistan’s special envoy Mohammad Sadiq, as the participants pledged to deepen cooperation in various fields.

The meeting marked the latest round of talks under the trilateral dialogue mechanism between Afghanistan, China and Pakistan that was launched in 2017 to promote political trust, counterterrorism coordination and economic integration.

Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, hosted the talks, which also included China’s special envoy Yue Xiaoyong.

“The first meeting of the Pakistan-China-Afghanistan trilateral in Kabul today... provided the occasion for convergence of views on economic and security cooperation as well as regional stability,” Sadiq, Pakistan’s special representative for Afghanistan, said in a post on social media platform X.

All three sides reviewed progress on commitments made during the last dialogue and agreed to convene the sixth round of foreign ministers’ meeting in Kabul at a future date, according to a report published by Afghanistan’s Ariana News.

The officials also discussed broader preparations for an upcoming meeting of foreign ministers from Afghanistan’s neighboring countries, and reaffirmed their intention to expand political and economic engagement.

Muttaqi highlighted the importance of strengthening bilateral and trilateral ties, while the Chinese and Pakistani envoys reiterated their commitment to good-neighborly relations based on mutual respect and non-interference.

China and Pakistan are among the few countries to maintain ongoing engagement with the Taliban-led government in Kabul, though neither formally recognizes it.

Both Beijing and Islamabad have called for stability in Afghanistan to enable cross-border connectivity and curb the threat of militant spillover.


Pakistan says ‘premature’ to speculate if ceasefire will lead to real peace with India

Updated 10 May 2025
Follow

Pakistan says ‘premature’ to speculate if ceasefire will lead to real peace with India

  • Pakistani State Minister for Interior Talal Chaudhry tells Arab News “response would be harsh” if India defied ceasefire 
  • Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri says armed forces had been given instructions to “deal strongly” with any violations

ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said on Saturday it was premature to speculate if a US-brokered military ceasefire between Pakistan and India would lead to real peace, as fresh violence was reported on both sides of the de facto border between the two nuclear-armed nations, who vowed retaliation. 

Within hours of the truce announcement, violations were reported from the main cities of Indian-administered Kashmir, as well as in Azad Kashmir on the Pakistani side of the Line of Control, the de facto border that divides the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan.

The reports came after Islamabad and India both announced a sudden stop to a conflict that had seemed to be spiraling alarmingly. The US said they had also agreed to hold talks on a broad range of issues at a neutral site.

Pakistani Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry told Arab News, “the response would be harsh” if India defied the ceasefire agreement. 

Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the armed forces had been given instructions to “deal strongly” with any violations.

Pakistani information minister Attaullah Tarar has said there is “no truth” to Indian claims it had violated the ceasefire.

“This is just the beginning, it’s a bit early to speculate,” Asif said in an interview to Geo News when asked if the ceasefire could open a path to real peace. 

“As time passes maybe these types of paths will emerge but at this point it would be premature to pin those kinds of hopes to the problem.”

He added: “When talks begin, maybe some way will be found.”

Earlier in the day, the Indian foreign secretary said the two countries’ military operations’ chiefs had spoken to each other and agreed that all fighting would stop at 5 p.m. Indian time (1130 GMT) without using the word “ceasefire.” The MO chiefs would next speak on May 12, he added. 

But within hours, Reuters said blasts were heard in Srinagar and Jammu in Indian-administered Kashmir and projectiles and flashes were seen in the night sky over Jammu, similar to the events of the previous evening.

Pakistani witnesses and local media channels also reported firing from India into Pakistan in Azad Kashmir.

“BITTER HISTORY”

The ceasefire announcement came after the Pakistan military said early on Saturday India had attacked three bases in Pakistan with missiles, after which it had targeted multiple bases in India in response, including a missile storage site in India’s north.

India said there was limited damage to equipment and personnel at air force stations in the Udhampur, Pathankot, Adampur and Bhuj areas. The military said there were several high-speed missile attacks on several air bases in Indian Punjab, and that India had responded to the attacks.

Saturday’s military confrontation, the worst fighting between the longstanding enemies in decades, followed days of daily clashing since Wednesday through drones and missiles and gunfighting on the Line of control. At least 50 have been killed on both sides.

The latest round of tensions were triggered by a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 people on April 22. New Delhi said Islamabad was involved, which denied the allegation and repeatedly said it was willing to participate in a transparent and credible inquiry.

Pakistan and India have a history of bitter relations, having fought two of their three wars over Kashmir, a region split between them, since gaining independence from the former British colonial rule in 1947.

Both nations acquired nuclear weapons in 1998.

– With inputs from Reuters


Pakistanis welcome ceasefire with India but caution against trusting New Delhi

Updated 10 May 2025
Follow

Pakistanis welcome ceasefire with India but caution against trusting New Delhi

  • A trader in Karachi says no one wins in war, warning that conflicts only bring human suffering
  • A veterinarian in Islamabad warns India can behave unpredictably even within treaty frameworks

KARACHI/ISLAMABAD: People in Pakistan on Saturday welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire with India after heavy cross-border missile and drone exchange between the two countries, though some expressed skepticism about New Delhi’s willingness to uphold the truce.

The ceasefire brought an end to one of the most serious military standoffs between the two nuclear-armed neighbors in decades, triggered by a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir last month that killed 26 tourists.

India blamed Pakistan for the incident and launched missile strikes on what it called “terrorist camps” in five Pakistani cities. Islamabad denied involvement and retaliated by targeting Indian military sites.

The hostilities escalated until Washington brokered a truce, announced Saturday by US President Donald Trump.

“Look, the ceasefire announcement has been beneficial for both countries,” said Abbas Raza, a trader in Karachi, while speaking to Arab News. “Who wins when there’s loss? No one wins in loss. People only suffer.”

Muhammad Shehbaz, a local businessman in the city, said Pakistan had exercised restraint for days despite repeated “Indian provocations.”

“India was pushing, trying to provoke Pakistan into escalating the conflict,” he said. “They kept at it, but Pakistan showed restraint again and again.”

“Then yesterday, when Pakistan carried out a retaliatory strike, they were shaken within three hours,” he continued. “They were brought to their knees. And today, they called in Trump and agreed to a ceasefire.”

Zubia Mehfooz, a woman visiting Karachi, said she had been unable to return to the United States, where her family lives, due to the airspace shutdown caused by the conflict.

“I was here for some work and got stuck,” she said. “I have a flight Monday morning. There’s never an issue from our [Pakistani] side. You know where the issue comes from. If the ceasefire holds, it’s a very good thing.”

But in Islamabad, some urged caution, citing past episodes.

“We don’t fully trust India’s statements,” said Muhammad Farhan Hameed, a veterinarian. “Past experiences have shown this. Many treaties have been signed before, but sometimes they behave unpredictably and break from what was agreed.”