A massive landslide early this year formed a natural dam in the Hunza River, creating a lake that is consuming upstream villages as it expands. If the dam breaks, a flash flood could threaten downstream villages too. The landslide also has blocked the Karakoram Highway, a vital trade link to China, cutting off 25,000 people in the Upper Hunza Valley.
The crisis is another headache for the government in Islamabad, already struggling to contain a spreading al-Qaeda and Taliban militancy.
"Why can't the government remove this debris to give an outlet to the water? Doesn't it have sufficient machinery to do away with it?" asked Ajaz Ali, who has watched in frustration as the water slowly submerges his village of Shishkat.
Text: AP
Image: People wait for boats at a lake created due to blockade of the Hunza River in Attabad, northern Pakistan. (Photograph copyright AP)
