Massive floods in Pakistan have struck both the rural heartland and industrial centers for the first time in decades, causing billions of dollars in damage while straining food supplies, exports and a fragile economic recovery.

Islamabad

Record monsoon rains have led to severe flooding across Pakistan, particularly impacting the agricultural heartland of Punjab province. Farmers have reported widespread destruction of cotton, rice, and maize crops, as well as loss of livestock and homes. The disaster has also affected factory production and caused significant hardship for laborers and landowners alike.

Government officials have acknowledged that the floods have undermined economic recovery plans, with inflation rising sharply due to crop losses and supply disruptions. The National Disaster Management Authority reports that over 1,000 people have died and more than 2.5 million have been evacuated since the onset of the floods. The situation has heightened concerns about food security and economic stability in the country.

Pakistan floods batter farmers, factories and fiscal plans

When floodwaters from record mountain rain entered Kabirwala in Pakistan's Punjab province, 55-year-old farm worker Mohammad Nawab evacuated with his family and other villagers to higher ground. He then returned to work in the fields, only to find his cotton crops ruined by the floods. MOHAMMAD NAWAB, Farm Worker, Kabirwala, Pakistan The floodwater is not drying up. It is continuing to stay. We are in a miserable condition. Our blooming cotton crop was destroyed. Rab Nawaz is a 58-year-old farmer who supervises the land where Nawab works. Our crops are destroyed. Our laborers are also affected in this land belonging to Fakhar Imam Sahib. Their homes are also destroyed. Their crops are also destroyed. Some of their livestock were swept away. Their homes are also destroyed. They have lost a lot. The owner has lost a lot. We have also lost a lot. And our people are very worried. Pakistan started receiving record monsoon rains in late June, triggering severe flooding starting in the northern provinces. It worsened in August, with eastern Punjab province, which grows nearly two-thirds of Pakistan's rice and most of its cotton and maize, burying the brunt since then. Pakistan's planning minister Ahsan Iqbal told Reuters last Thursday that a country's plan to accelerate its economy now faces a major setback. The government had been optimistic about 2026, penciling in 4.2 percent growth on the back of a rebound in farming and manufacturing. That was after a $7 billion international monetary fund bailout. But the record monsoon rains, amplified by dam releases from India, have submerged large swaths of Punjab and Sindh, the two most populous and economically vital provinces. As a result, inflation is climbing. Wheat, sugar, onion and tomato prices are spiking, with a sensitive price index hitting a 26-month high. Pakistan Railway employee Aqib Ghaffar told Reuters that he is praying for protection. This flood is a catastrophe from Allah. I am not sure if it is because of traders or the government, but there is also the misery of inflation. So we pray to Allah to protect us from inflation as well as the flood. The National Disaster Management Authority says more than 1,000 people have died since June 26, while over 2.5 million people have been evacuated.

Southern China and Hong Kong are bracing for Super Typhoon Ragasa as authorities evacuate hundreds of thousands of people. CBS News' Anna Coren has more details.

Hong Kong Island

Super Typhoon Ragasa targets Southern China, Hong Kong

Russian President Vladimir Putin offered to voluntarily maintain the limits on deployed strategic nuclear weapons set in the 2010 New START accord after it expires in February if the U.S. agreed to do the same.

Moscow

Putin offers Trump one-year extension to nuclear weapons treaty

Nvidia will invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI and supply it with data center chips, the companies said, marking a tie-up between two of the highest-profile players in the global artificial intelligence race.

San Francisco

Rise of AI

Nvidia to invest $100 billion in OpenAI, linking up two AI titans

President Trump announced Monday the FDA believes pregnant women should not take acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, claiming there could be a link between the medication and autism, despite objections from medical experts.

Washington

Trump, FDA tell pregnant women not to take Tylenol

ABC announced Monday that "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" will return to the air Tuesday night (September 23). The network pulled the show last week following a remark from Kimmel about the death of Charlie Kirk.

Los Angeles

Jimmy Kimmel returning to air

As leaders from around the globe come together at the United Nations General Assembly in New York this week, conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine continue to rage.

New York

World leaders come together at UNGA as global tensions rise

Monday marks the second day of strike action after a similar walk-off was called on Sunday by the southern European country's largest trade union, the Italian Confederation of Labour (CGIL).

Rome

Middle East Conflict

Thousands strike across Italy in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza

The Trump administration is adding $100,000 to the existing fee for H-1B visa applications, taking aim at a program that is used to attract highly skilled workers to the U.S.

Trump administration to add $100,000 fee for H-1B visas

President Donald Trump urged Attorney General Pam Bondi in a social media post to move forward with cases against several people connected to the U.S. government. CBS News justice correspondent Scott MacFarlane has more.

Trump urges Pam Bondi to go after his political foes

Russia is denying that its planes entered Estonian airspace on Saturday, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, but Estonia's foreign minister is saying the government has "irrefutable evidence" of the incursion.

Ukraine Invasion

Russia denies violating Estonian airspace

U.S. President Donald Trump was the final speaker at a politically charged memorial service for conservative activist and MAGA influencer Charlie Kirk that also included words of forgiveness from Kirk’s widow as well as remarks from the vice-president and one of Trump’s sons.

Glendale

Trump closes out Charlie Kirk memorial

Media mogul Lachlan Murdoch and business leaders Larry Ellison and Michael Dell would be involved as U.S. investors in a proposed deal to keep TikTok operating in the United States, according to President Donald Trump speaking to Fox News channel.

Trump says Murdochs would be involved in TikTok deal

Portugal, the UK, Australia and Canada joined over 150 countries that now recognise a Palestinian state. The announcements come ahead of the United Nations General Assembly in the week ahead.

Lisbon

Portugal formally recognises Palestinian state

Police say a 23-year-old was arrested and charged Sunday night with second-degree murder after one person was killed and several others were injured in a shooting at a New Hampshire country club. Witnesses say the shooter said “free Palestine” and before opening fire.

Nashua

Suspect yelled 'free Palestine' before country club shooting

President Trump is demanding that the Justice Department go after his political rivals following a shakeup in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Eastern Virginia. Willie James Inman reports.

Trump pressuring Justice Department to pursue his political foes

President Trump, Vice President JD Vance and several others remembered Charlie Kirk at a memorial service in Arizona that was attended by thousands.

Phoenix

Trump, others remember Charlie Kirk at memorial service

The United Kingdom, Canada and Australia officially recognized Palestine as a state Sunday, a move that has long been opposed by the U.S. and Israel. More countries are expected to do the same this week as world leaders gather in New York for the U.N. General Assembly.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

Israel continuing assault on Gaza after countries recognize Palestinian statehood

A group of US Republicans has sent a letter to France, Canada, the UK and Australia, urging them to re-consider their decision to recognise a Palestinian state.  It's warning there may be consequences if the countries move ahead with plan at the upcoming UN General Assembly.

US Republicans warn allies over decision to recognise Palestinian state

Britain, Canada and Australia all recognized a Palestinian state on Sunday (September 21) in a move borne out of frustration over the Gaza war and intended to promote a two-state solution, but which is also bound to anger Israel and its main ally, the U.S.

Britain, Canada and Australia all recognize Palestinian state

The President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, will address the UN on Monday, after the General Assembly voted to allow him to join remotely. The U.S. has refused to issue him a visa to attend in person.

UN approves video address by Palestine’s Abbas after U.S. visa refusal

Sixty nations have agreed to a new treaty aimed at protecting marine biodiversity in international waters. But the strength of the deal governing the high seas is uncertain as some of the world’s biggest players - including China, the U.S., Russia and Japan - have yet to ratify.

Nations ratify world's first treaty to protect international waters

A cyberattack on a provider of check-in and boarding systems has disrupted operations at several major European airports including London's Heathrow, the continent's busiest, causing flight delays and cancellations on Saturday (September 20).

London

Travelers stranded as cyberattack disrupts major European airports

The high seas will soon have their own Conference of the Parties (COP). This new body will oversee the implementation of the Agreement on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, which is scheduled to enter into force in early 2026 after the legally required 120-day period.

Manhattan

Optus, Australia's second-largest telecom carrier, promised on Saturday "full cooperation" with official investigators, after an outage disrupted emergency call services for 13 hours. Four people died amid the technical failure, including an eight-week-old boy.

Melbourne

Telco vows to cooperate after deadly outage

Dozens more Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s military offensive. Amid mounting international criticism of Israel, there has been a renewed push for a two-state solution, with Portugal being the latest advocate.

Two-state solution gains support as IDF moves on Gaza City

Charlie Kirk will be mourned in a massive public memorial in Phoenix, Ariz., on Sunday. With U.S. President Donald Trump and other top U.S. officials attending, the event is expected to bring significant security concerns.

Thousands set to attend Charlie Kirk's public memorial

Russia has launched more than 600 attacks on multiple cities across Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is renewing calls for more support, and warning allies that defending Europe means defending Ukraine.

Kyiv

Russia launches mass strikes across Ukraine

A cyberattack has disrupted air traffic at several airports in Europe. Check-in and boarding systems went down in London, Brussels and Berlin. Europe’s aviation safety organisation says airlines were asked to cancel 50% of their flights to reduce pressure on the system.

Heathrow Airport

Flight chaos as UK, European airports hit by cyberattack

Three Russian military jets violated NATO member Estonia's airspace for 12 minutes on Friday in an "unprecedentedly brazen" incursion, its government said, the latest in a series of recent military actions by Russia that have rattled the alliance.

Tallinn

Russian jets enter Estonia's airspace in latest test for NATO

President Trump said Friday that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping "made progress" on a deal over TikTok ownership, and that he would visit China early next year.

Breakdown