Director General Inter Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Major General Babar Iftikhar on Wednesday said the central ceremony at General Headquarters (GHQ) to commemorate Defence & Martyrs Day on September 6 was postponed in solidarity with the flood affected people of Pakistan. The ISPR DG in a tweet on Pakistan Army media wing’s official Twitter handle shared this decision. He further wrote that “Pakistan Armed Forces shall continue serving our brothers and sisters struck by unprecedented floods.” The ceremony is held to commemorate the sacrifices of fallen heroes during the 1965 war.
Pakistan is reeling from catastrophic floods post monsoon rains this year. The National Disaster Management Authority has said that over 1,000 people have lost their lives so far while hundreds were left injured. Estimates say nearly a third of the country has been submerged in water with over 30 million people displaced. The floods have caused massive destruction to the infrastructure, and has swept away a number of roads, bridges, houses, schools, hospitals and power houses. The armed forces along with district administrations and civil organisations have been conducting relief and rescue operations across the country.
