[UPDATED] Anwar orders immediate aid coordination following Nepal, India flood disaster

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysian Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has issued an immediate directive for aid coordination following the catastrophic flood disaster in Nepal and India. In a speech following the opening of the 2026 National Innovation and Commercialisation Expo, Anwar emphasized his request to all agencies, including the National Security Council and the Foreign Ministry, to swiftly evaluate the crisis and contact embassies in India and Nepal to hasten aid efforts.

The floods have left over 50 Malaysians stranded in Nepal, unreachable by their families since the disaster struck. The Malaysian Embassy in Kathmandu, led by charge d'affaires Mohd Firdaus Azman, is grappling with the challenge posed by damaged communication infrastructure and disrupted road access, making it difficult to gather information on the missing Malaysians. Nepalese authorities have deployed helicopters for search-and-rescue operations, though access to some affected regions remains a formidable obstacle.

The disaster, triggered by the collapse of a Himalayan glacier resulting in a surge of ice, rocks, and mud into river systems, has resulted in more than 150 fatalities. Hundreds of locals and foreign visitors remain unaccounted for. Villages, bridges, roads, and power projects were entirely washed away, while flood alerts have been issued in parts of India as authorities monitor the rising river levels downstream.