A hailstorm battered homes and smashed car windows as it caused widespread damage in the Pakistani capital.

Footage shows the storm hammering homes and vehicles that were parked in Islamabad on Wednesday, April 16.

Officials said the storm lasted for around 35 minutes before subsiding. Rawalpindi and Islamabad, were among the worst affected, but other parts of Pakistan were also struck.

Dozens of trees were also uprooted by the driving wind and rain. Flash floods were triggered in urban areas.

Sherry Rehman, Pakistan's former Federal Climate Change Minister, made unproven claims that the hailstorm was caused by climate change.

She said: 'This is extreme weather volatility driven by climate change, where anomalies proliferate.

'Not a random natural event. And related entirely to human actions like emissions, which are growing because of addiction to dirty energy.'

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) issued a weather alert, warning of heavy rain, thunderstorms, windstorms, and isolated hailstorms, which were expected to impact parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab on Friday and Saturday evenings.