Malaysia to send SMART team to Nepal

Malaysia has decided to send its Special Malaysia Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team (SMART) to Nepal to aid in the ongoing search and rescue operations following the devastating flash floods that struck the country on Wednesday. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced that the team's primary objective is to locate and bring home any Malaysians affected by the disaster, while also assisting the Malaysian embassy in Kathmandu with coordinating aid.

The decision to deploy SMART was made in collaboration with the National Security Council and the national disaster management agency, with the foreign ministry playing a crucial role in coordinating with the Nepali government. The team is expected to be deployed as soon as possible.

In addition to the search and rescue efforts, Malaysia will contribute US$1 million to Nepal to aid flood victims and support post-disaster recovery. This assistance comes after Nepal reversed its initial decision to reject foreign search-and-rescue teams amid diplomatic pressure from countries whose nationals are still missing.

As of 9am today, the death toll from the flash floods has risen to 734, while 2,498 people remain missing. A total of 55 Malaysians in Nepal are currently uncontactable since the floods occurred on August 26. The Nepal Tourism Board reported that 261 foreign tourists have been rescued as of 6pm yesterday, with another 320 still missing.