Presidential Palace, Kabul – H.E. Hamid Karzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is deeply disturbed by the Band-e-Sultan dam burst incident this morning in Ghazni province, causing extensive flooding in villages and in the streets of Ghazni city.

While there are reports about a small number of deaths, casualties have been mainly avoided by prior warning of villagers by the local authorities.

In his reaction to the news, the President said: "I am deeply disturbed by the news of this incident. It is sad that heavy rains, while a blessing for the drought-hit Afghanistan, are causing unexpected calamities such as this one. I assure the people of Ghazni that all steps will be taken immediately by the Government to provide relief to the affected communities".

Responding speedily to the incident today, various government ministries took action to deal with the emergency situation.

The Rural Rehabilitation and Development Minister and the Public Works Minister are in Ghazni now to oversee the rescue and relief operations. Both ministries have carried essential food and relief items to the region for distribution to the affected families.

A delegation from the Ministry of Water and Power is also in the area assessing the emergency needs of the affected communities. The Ministry of Defence and the Ghazni-based Provincial Reconstruction Team are also helping with the emergency, especially by providing air transport.