A Pakistani official says the death toll from flash floods in the country's northwest has risen to at least 274 after rescuers recovered dozens of bodies from the rubble of collapsed houses.

Rescuers recovered dozens more bodies from the rubble of collapsed homes in a northwestern district of Pakistan, bringing the death toll to at least 274, as authorities defended their response to the flooding and said they did not need any foreign help at this point.

Cloudbursts are causing chaos in mountainous parts of India and Pakistan, with tremendous amounts of rain falling in a short period of time over a concentrated area.

More than 200 people remain missing in one district of north-west Pakistan as a result of devastating monsoon flooding and landslides, an official has said. Flash floods have killed more than 300 people in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir in recent days, with most of the deaths recorded in the mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Hurriyat leader Altaf Hussain Wani described August 5 as a day of betrayal. In an emotional interview with state media, he stated, “India thought it could erase Kashmir’s identity, but the resistance grows stronger. Pakistan’s support gives us hope that justice will prevail.”

Reasserting Islamabad’s long-standing stance on Kashmir, Dar added, “The Kashmir cause remains just, the rights of the Kashmiri people inalienable, and Pakistan's support for their struggle unshakable until justice prevails. As we commemorate this day, let us renew our dedication to a stronger, more secure, and prosperous Pakistan.”

JAMMU: BSF has handed over to Pakistan Rangers the body of a Pakistani intruder shot dead by the border force while trying to enter India via international border in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district on Monday evening.