British royal couple visit Pakistan’s climate-change affected north
ISLAMABAD — Britain’s Prince William and wife Kate on Wednesday traveled to Pakistan’s scenic northern mountains and glaciers, drawing attention to the challenges of climate change in the South Asian nation, where glaciers are melting at a fast pace.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge flew to the city of Chitral, where they were accorded a warm welcome.
Elders from the non-Muslim Kalash community presented them with traditional coats, hats and scarves.
The couple spent time with men, women and children from the Kalash community before enjoying performances of traditional dances and music by local residents.
The visit comes a day after Prince William made a speech at a cultural event in the capital of Islamabad, saying he will visit Chitral to see some of the impacts of climate change — including a melting glacier — as well as meet with local communities faced with the impact of a damaged environment.
Pakistan’s northern areas have witnessed flash floods in recent years, causing damage to property and casualties.
Britain’s Press Association reported that William and Kate sat on a wall in a village square in the Kalash Valley, surrounded by local children, as they watched a traditional dance.
The couple also visited the village of Bumburet in the Chitral region, which was destroyed by flooding in 2015 and met with survivors of the disaster. The royal pair watched an emergency response drill in which members of the community carried would-be casualties over a river.
William’s mother, Princess Diana, visited Pakistan in the 1990s to participate in a fund-raising event for a cancer hospital built by Prime Minister Imran Khan, who took office last year. Diana died in a car accident in 1997 and many Pakistanis still remember her for her charity work.
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