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Following a call to action from its Iranian students, a top university in the United States has decided to reject President Donald Trump’s travel ban.

The group of students wrote to the University of Texas at Austin last month to demand that it immediately respond to Trump’s “sweeping and discriminatory” ban, support Iranian students and scholars, and write back in a letter.

On behalf of the newly admitted Iranian students, interim university president Jim Davis received the letter on July 21 a day after Trump enacted an executive order outlawing citizens from all 12 nations, including Iran.

“This Proclamation undermines the very foundations of UT Austin.” Iranian students and researchers have long been a key component of the university’s academic and research excellence, particularly in STEM fields, the letter stated.

In a “testament to the enduring legacy of Iranian American contributions to education, innovation, and public service,” the group wrote in the letter that the university’s department of civil, architectural, and environmental engineering was named after Iranian-American entrepreneur and philanthropist Fariborz Maseeh.

The letter stated that “this is a moment that calls for bold and principled action.”

Iranian students’ academic contributions have long been beneficial for UT Austin. It must now defend them. Not only does failing to act risk harming the reputation of the institution itself, but it also risks harming the futures of individual students.

The letter was obtained by requesting access to public records.

The university and Davis have not made any public comments on the ban despite the students’ requests.

A request for comment was not received by Davis’ office.

Almost all of the Iranians who attended the University of Texas at Austin were graduate students, according to the university’s website.

The University of Texas at Austin, one of the most prestigious tertiary institutions in the US, placed 30th in the 2025 University Rankings by US News and World Report.

We now face the heartbreaking possibility of being denied entry for a long time, an Iranian student who was involved in the letter, a request for anonymity from an Iranian student who was involved in the letter.

The student claimed that many of the 1,500 Iranian students who belong to the group on Telegram were subjected to lengthy administrative processing after the interview.

Some of them have been denied visas, while others have chosen to skip interviews because they knew they would not be granted one, according to the student.

Many of them would have gone through extensive security checks before the ban on applying for student visas.

Trump’s travel ban also applies to Eritrea, Haiti, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen in addition to Iran.

The Trump administration is “collective punishment,” the student claimed.

The student argued that “people should not be equated with their governments.”

These blanket measures “undermine the very principles of justice, academic freedom, and equal opportunity that the United States has long fought for,” they claim.

Pakistan has been reeling from flooding triggered by torrential rains, with nearly 400 people killed since August 14.

On Wednesday, Karachi was inundated following a heavy downpour, paralysing the southern port city of 20 million people less than a week after deadly flash floods swept away villages in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

More than 700 people have been killed in the flooding and landslides across the South Asian nation since June, with forecasters warning of further downpours until Saturday.

So why have floods in Pakistan been so intense, and what is the solution to the South Asian country’s flooding problem?

Where did it flood in Pakistan?

The Buner district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province has been the worst hit, with more than 200 people killed and extensive damage to homes and public infrastructure across the northwestern mountainous province since August 14.

The Himalayan region of Gilgit-Baltistan, as well as Pakistan-administered Kashmir, was also affected.

Karachi, the capital of the southern Sindh province, was hit by floods after rainfall on Tuesday. Videos circulating on social media showed cars and motorbikes submerged in water.

How many people have died in the floods?

On Thursday, nine people died and 15 were injured across the country, according to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Seven of these deaths were in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while two were in Sindh.

On Wednesday, 41 people died and 11 people were injured across the country. At least 19 of these deaths were in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 11 deaths were in Sindh, and 11 deaths were reported in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Some 759 people have died, including 186 children, and 993 have been injured since the onset of the monsoon season in June. More than 4,000 houses have been damaged due to flooding in the same period.

What do rescue efforts look like?

The head of the NDMA, Lieutenant General Inam Haider Malik, said that more than 25,000 people had been rescued from flood-hit areas, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

The army and air force have also been pressed into action in rescue efforts.

On Wednesday, 2,300 people were treated in 14 active medical camps in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, according to the NDMA. Relief items have also been distributed among those affected by the floods.

What is causing the floods in Pakistan?

While the exact cause of the floods is yet to be determined, several factors could have contributed to the deluge.

“While climate change plays a critical role in intensifying flooding events in Pakistan, other factors such as urbanisation, deforestation, inadequate infrastructure, and poor river management also contribute significantly,” Ayyoob Sharifi, a professor at Hiroshima University in Japan, told Al Jazeera.

Climate change

Sharifi told Al Jazeera that climate change is causing monsoon rainfall to intensify, resulting in more frequent extreme precipitation events.

A study co-authored by Sharifi and published in February this year, indicates that cities such as Lahore and Faisalabad could experience increased rainfall under certain scenarios, heightening the risk of urban flooding.

He added that rising temperatures allow the atmosphere to hold more moisture, leading to heavier downpours during storms. In northern Pakistan, these higher temperatures are also accelerating glacial melting, which increases the likelihood of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). These are floods that occur when water is suddenly released from a glacial lake.

Earlier this month, a GLOF occurred in Pakistan’s northern region of Hunza, when the Shisper Glacier swelled the Hassanabad nullah, damaging infrastructure and destroying cultivable land, Dawn reported on August 8.

While Pakistan is responsible for less than 1 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions according to European Union data, the country bears the brunt of climate disaster, the country’s former Finance Minister Miftah Ismail told CNBC in 2022.

Heavy rain over a short period

Fahad Saeed, a climate scientist at the Berlin-based think tank, Climate Analytics, told Al Jazeera that the flooding was caused by higher-intensity rainfall. This means that there was a large amount of rain over a short period.

In Buner, more than 150mm (6 inches) of rain fell in just one hour on Friday morning.

In 2022, Pakistan endured its most severe monsoon season ever recorded, resulting in at least 1,700 deaths and causing an estimated $40bn in damage. Saeed said the 2022 floods were unexpected because of the areas they hit, ravaging arid or semiarid parts of northern Sindh that usually do not experience heavy rainfall.

However, rainfall this year has occurred within or around the region that normally experiences monsoon rain, he said. What is unusual this time is the sheer intensity of the rain.

Soil unable to absorb the rain in rural areas

Saeed explained that when there is rapid rainfall in a rural area over a short time, the soil does not get enough time to absorb the rainwater. “The rain doesn’t infiltrate into the soil, rather, it flows off the surface. It results in mudslides and soil erosion.”

This applies to rural areas in the northern parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and parts of Gilgit-Baltistan.

“What happens is that normally, if you are living next to the rivers, your house is prone to get destroyed or inundated. But this time, what happened is that even if you are on the slopes of the mountain, the rainfall is so intense that because of the mudslide and the landslides, it destroyed the homes at the elevations,” Saeed explained.

Issues with the drainage system in urban areas

Karachi primarily relies on natural stormwater drains, or nullahs, for rainwater to be drained off.

Research shows that Karachi generates more than 20,000 tonnes of solid waste per day, and the nullahs are clogged by this rubbish.

During an event on urban flooding last year, hydrologist Sana Adnan pointed out that cleaning nullahs only before the monsoon season significantly contributes to flooded roads, emphasising that heavy rains can happen at any time of the year, not just during the monsoon, local outlet Dawn News reported.

Architect and planner Arif Hasan told Dawn in 2020 that due to the absence of a sustainable social housing policy, working-class families set up informal settlements across these nullahs. These informal settlements and formal developments use the nullahs for sewage disposal.

Hasan wrote that since the mid-1960s, Karachi’s waste disposal system has been set up for sewage to go into nullahs.

Rapid urbanisation and migration

Sharifi said that another reason behind urban flooding is that rapid and unplanned urbanisation reduces natural drainage and increases surface run-off, exacerbating flooding in cities like Karachi and Lahore.

Saeed added that cities are growing due to the rapid migration of people from rural areas into urban centres, and climate change might also cause this.

“Whenever somebody migrates from a rural to an urban area, they tend to move towards big cities like Lahore or Karachi,” Saeed said.

He explained that climate change can result in low crop yields, compromising the livelihoods of farmers in rural areas, leading them to move their families to cities.

“Once they reach the city, they are most likely to settle in informal settlements. Over time, they try to become part of that society. Meanwhile, city management struggles to provide necessary civic facilities, creating a kind of feedback loop.”

Deforestation and river management issues

“Loss of forest cover in upstream areas reduces the land’s ability to absorb water, increasing the volume of run-off into rivers,” Sharifi said.

Buner is mostly hilly, with steep slopes leading into narrow valleys. The area’s loose, easily eroded soil and ongoing deforestation make it especially prone to landslides and flash floods.

Sharifi added that the absence of green infrastructure such as parks, wetlands and permeable pavements also exacerbates flooding by removing natural systems that would otherwise help absorb and slow water flow, reducing the risk of flooding.

“Inefficient management of river systems, including the lack of proper embankments and flood control measures, contributes to riverine flooding.”

Limitations in early warning systems 

The study that Sharifi co-authored identified limitations in the early warning systems which predict rainfall.

He explained that the currently used models often fail to capture regional and local climate nuances, leading to inaccuracies in projecting extreme precipitation events at smaller scales.

Sharifi added that most studies focus on large cities, leaving small cities underrepresented.

What measures can Pakistan take to mitigate flooding?

“Mitigating flooding in Pakistan requires a multi-faceted approach that addresses both structural and non-structural measures,” Sharifi said.

He explained that structural steps include building and maintaining drainage systems, reservoirs and restoring natural waterways.

Urban areas should use green infrastructure like permeable pavements and rain gardens to absorb water and prevent run-off. Urban planning must also manage land use to avoid building in flood-prone areas.

Non-structural measures include the latest early warning systems, better disaster preparedness, community education on flood risks and stronger disaster management coordination.

Saeed said that Pakistan is experiencing multiple facets of climate change impacts.

He said that addressing climate change calls for holistic, integrated planning across different departments.

“We can no longer afford to work in silos,” Saeed said, explaining that Pakistan has federal-level ministries for climate change, development, water, industry and agriculture.

Climate scientists, academics and other experts need to become a part of climate policymaking in the country, he said.

How is the current flood situation in Pakistan?

Rainwater accumulation has been cleared from the northwestern regions of Pakistan. However, infrastructure has sustained damage.

The Sindh Information Department made a series of posts on X on Wednesday saying that stormwater has been cleared from roads in multiple neighbourhoods in Karachi, including North Nazimabad. Safoora, Clifton and Liaquatabad.

Dawn reported on Wednesday that rainwater had accumulated in some roads near Karachi’s major I I Chundrigar Road.

Is more flooding expected in Pakistan?

Yes, the NDMA posted an emergency alert on X at about noon (07:18 GMT) saying that extremely heavy rainfall is expected in Sindh’s cities Karachi, Hyderabad, Thatta, Badin, Mirpurkhas, Sukkur and adjacent areas “within the next 12-24 hours”.

The NDMA added that there is a risk of more than 50 to 100mm of rainfall over a short period raising the risks of urban flooding in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur and Mirpurkhas.

The NDMA added that Sindh’s rural regions Thatta, Badin, Jamshoro and Dadu are at risk of sudden flooding due to rising water levels in the Indus River and its tributaries. Low-lying regions may be inundated, with major highways and local roads potentially submerged, severely affecting transport. Extended disruptions to power and telecommunication services are also expected.

The authority has warned residents in flood-prone areas to move livestock and valuable items to safe locations, keep emergency supplies ready, be careful when using electrical appliances and stay away from submerged roads and from electrical poles.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department issued a similar warning on its X account on Wednesday, listing more areas prone to upcoming floods in the southern region of the Balochistan province, such as Makran and Khuzdar.

In San Francisco, federal immigration officers were filmed smearing a protester with zip-ties and pepper spray. Before one is tackled and detained, a video shows officers approaching the ICE field office, some of whom are wearing ICE patches, followed by protesters.

At least one person has been killed and 22 others were wounded in a Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine, officials said, as Moscow launched its largest attack on its neighbour in weeks amid an ongoing diplomatic push for a ceasefire.

Russian forces launched 574 drones and 40 missiles overnight, Ukraine’s Air Force said on Thursday, adding that its air defence units had downed most of the attacks. But a number of the attacks struck targets in several locations across Ukraine, resulting in casualties and damage to buildings.

In the western city of Lviv, about 70km (43 miles) from the border with Poland, a drone and missile attack killed one person, injured three and damaged 26 residential buildings, Governor Maksym Kozytskyi said.

In Mukachevo, near the border with Hungary and Slovakia, 15 people were wounded in a Russian attack, local authorities said.

The strike on the town also destroyed storage facilities at a US electronics manufacturer, the Reuters news agency reported. Television footage showed the building at the plant, which regional Governor Myroslav Biletskyi said produced consumer electronics, engulfed in smoke, the agency reported.

In a post on X, Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha said the plant was a “fully civilian facility that has nothing to do with defense or the military”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the attack, saying it was carried out “as if nothing were changing at all”.

Moscow has shown no signs of pursuing meaningful negotiations to end the war, he said, urging the international community to respond with stronger pressure on Russia, including tougher sanctions and tariffs.

Russia “wasted several cruise missiles against an American business,” he said, noting that it was a regular civilian enterprise producing domestic utilities, such as coffee machines. “And that too became a target for Russia. Very telling.”

Russian drones and missiles also hit the northwestern city of Lutsk, Mayor Ihor Polishchuk said, but there were no reported casualties, according to the AFP news agency.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Ministry of Defence said that it had destroyed 49 Ukrainian drones at various locations. It did not say whether the attacks had caused any casualties or damage.

Poland’s military said on Thursday that it had scrambled aircraft to protect its airspace in response to the Russian assault on its neighbour.

Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Charles Stratford said the deluge of drones and missiles was “a sign that Russia is not interested … in this effort to at least begin meaningful talks towards ending the war”.

Push for ceasefire

The latest exchange of fire between Moscow and Kyiv follows a renewed diplomatic push to end the war led by United States President Donald Trump.

On Friday, Trump hosted his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, at a summit in Alaska in a bid to strike a ceasefire deal, but no agreement was reached.

He then held a meeting on Monday at the White House with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and key European leaders on the situation, assuring Ukraine that Washington would provide it with “very good protection” if a deal is reached to end the war.

But the meeting left many issues unresolved, with a Ukrainian military analyst saying he was sceptical about the outcome.

“No decision has been made from the viewpoint of security guarantees [for Ukraine], the supply of arms and [the deployment of Western] troops,” Ihor Romanenko, the former deputy head of Ukraine’s army, told Al Jazeera.

Earlier, Zelenskyy said Ukraine would hold intensive meetings to understand the kind of security guarantees its allies are willing to provide.

The details are being hammered out among national security advisers and military officials in the coming days, Zelenskyy told reporters. He then expects to be ready to hold direct talks with Putin for the first time since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The talks could also be conducted in a trilateral format alongside Trump, Zelenskyy said.

“We want to have an understanding of the security guarantees architecture within seven to 10 days. And based on that understanding, we aim to hold a trilateral meeting. That was my logic,” Zelenskyy told reporters on Wednesday after his trip to Washington, DC.

“President Trump suggested a slightly different logic: a trilateral meeting through a bilateral one,” Zelenskyy said. “But then we all agreed that, in any case, we continue working on the security guarantees, establishing this approximate framework, similar to Article 5. And what we have today is political support for this.”

Article 5 is NATO’s common defence guarantee under which an attack on one member is considered an attack on them all.

Al Jazeera’s Stratford said that since Trump’s meetings, there had been no visible progress on arranging a bilateral meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian leaders, and “certainly not in relation to the kind of time frame that … Trump set during that meeting in Washington”.

“[Trump] was talking about wanting a meeting in a couple of weeks,” said Stratford, adding that the US leader had said he had spoken to Putin about meeting with Zelenskyy and that he “was potentially open to it”.

A venue for the meeting between the Ukrainian and Russian leaders is being discussed, with Switzerland, Austria and Turkiye as possibilities, Zelenskyy added. He said that Hungary, which has offered to host talks, would be a “challenging” location.

On Thursday, Hungary reiterated an offer to host peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv.

“If we are needed, we are ready to provide appropriately fair and safe conditions for such peace negotiations,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said in a podcast broadcast on Facebook.

In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday, US Vice President JD Vance said that European countries would have to shoulder the “lion’s share” of guaranteeing Ukraine’s security in the event of a deal to end the war, and that the US should not have to “carry the burden”.