President and general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Xi Jinping has chaired a Politburo meeting to deliberate and make arrangements on rescue and relief efforts after a devastating mudslide hit Gyirong County in Xizang on Wednesday.

President Xi also sent a message of condolences to his Nepalese counterpart Ram Chandra Poudel over the disaster.

At the beginning of Friday's Politburo meeting, Xi and other leaders observed a moment of silence to mourn the victims of the disaster, which struck the border port of Gyirong.

According to the meeting, emergency rescue operations have been carried out swiftly and in an orderly and well-coordinated manner under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee, with comprehensive efforts underway for the resettlement of affected people and handling of the aftermath.

The meeting emphasised that all relevant authorities and departments must take resolute and effective measures for the rescue-related work.

It stressed that search and rescue plans should be formulated in a scientific manner, and every effort should be made to search for and rescue all missing Chinese and foreign nationals.

"There are still many hidden dangers of glaciers, ice lakes and geological disasters in the surrounding area, and rescue is facing great difficulties," Xinhua News Agency reported the leaders as saying.

China will provide emergency aid to the disaster-hit area in Nepal and carry out international rescue cooperation, the meeting said.

Mainland authorities said the number of dead in Xizang has risen to five from three, with 558 still missing. (Xinhua & Reuters)
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Last updated: 2026-08-28 HKT 16:35




Edited by Edmond Fong