UK charity raises $15 million for flood relief aid in Pakistan

• The Disaster Emergency Committee has raised $15.5 million in two days.
• Majority of funds raised by British Muslims, who dug deep into their pay packets and savings.
• Islamic Relief, one of the DEC’s primary charities, has sent fundraisers to every other mosque in Britain.

A major British charity has raised £13.5 million ($15.5 million) to aid relief efforts in Pakistan in the aftermath of the devastating floods.

The Disaster Emergency Committee, a group of 15 leading British charities, raised the majority of the funds from British Muslims across the country, who dug deep into their pay packets and savings to help the Pakistanis after the committee issued an emergency appeal.

DEC CEO Saleh Saeed told Sky News that the funds were raised in just over two days, praising his teams’ “hard work.”

In Pakistan, the DEC collaborates with 11 charitable organisations, including Cafod, Oxfam, and the Red Cross, as well as the government and the UN.

When it comes to assisting the DEC’s relief efforts, British Muslims have led from the front. Islamic Relief, one of the DEC’s primary charities, has sent fundraisers to every other mosque in the country.

In less than an hour, around £6,000 was raised at Finsbury Park Mosque in north London. The rapid fundraising has been all the more extraordinary as Britain braces for its worst cost of living crisis in a generation.

According to the mosque’s imam, Jamal Abdinasir, empathy and charity should motivate every Muslim.

He said: “Allah tests different people in different ways. Tomorrow it could be us going through a flood, famine, drought, hunger… any difficulty.

“We don’t want that to be us. And should that be us, we are going to find rest in the fact that there are our brothers and sisters across the globe who are going to help.”

Azizur Rahman, one of the Islamic Relief fundraisers, told media: “Our collection is going to help provide emergency aid to those that are vulnerable now. From food packs to emergency hygiene kits, and putting people in shelter.

“A lot of people have lost their homes, so we are setting up temporary accommodation for people, to give them a safe space to stay.”

Even young children contributed to charity efforts, with Selina Khaider telling Sky News about the importance of compassion.

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“Some of them don’t have food. They are suffering. We should help them. It would be very kind to.”

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