Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Swat mass exodus continues




MINGORA/CHAKDARRA: Thousands of people Tuesday continued to flee all the areas where military has launched the third phase of the Rah-e-Haq operation that has so far claimed dozens of lives of civilians.

The residents of Koza Bandai, Bara Bandai, Ningwalai, Shakardara, Shawar, Ronial, Roringar, Chuperial, Khariri, Biha, Charbagh, Manglawar, Sangota and other areas left their houses in hurry to save their lives. Thousands of people, most of them women and children, were moving out from their respective areas using unfrequented and arduous paths due to continuing curfew.

Aged and ailing persons were being carried on charpoys along with bundles of their belongings. Around 40,000 people have so far migrated to the Mingora city where they don’t have any shelter or facilities as both the provincial and federal governments have been criminally ignorant to their unbearable woes. The operation, in which majority of people killed were civilians, displaced thousands of people but the government left them in the lurch which alienated people from the government.

Some have taken shelter at their relatives’ houses while most of the IDPs were forced to take refuge in mosques and male guests houses of the people. Thousands of fleeing people, locals put their number at 30,000, reached the neighbouring Chakdarra town of the Lower Dir district. They migrated from Shamozo area of the troubled valley. The people said that the forces asked them to leave the area within three days before an impending action against the militants who had attacked a police post. They left their houses at once and covered 20kms to reach the town. Al-Khidmat Foundation had established a relief camp to help the IDPs while there was no camp from the government. Families were also seen sitting on the both sides of the road under open sky.

Commissioner Malakand Division, Fazl Karim Khattak, said that 28,000 people had migrated so far from the troubled areas of the valley. He, however, said that the government had reserved 13 schools for camps adding that food and other facilities would be provided. He said that the IDPs would properly be registered in these camps.

Most of the people, however, preferred to move out from the beleaguered district as they did not feel secured in Mingora or other towns of Swat. The moneyed people had already left the valley and settled in Peshawar, Islamabad, Karachi and even abroad. Some people called The News from abroad and informed that they had moved out their children from the country, as they did not felt protected even in big cities of the country.

2 schools blown up in Bajaur
KHAR: Unidentified militants blew up two boys’ schools in Salarzai tehsil of the restive Bajaur Agency on Tuesday. Sources said militants blew up the Government High School, Pusht, and a primary school in the Salarzai area with explosives. No loss of life was reported as both schools were closed. The militants have so far destroyed 27 schools in Bajaur Agency.Meanwhile, the security forces targeted hideouts of militants in Mamond tehsil and Nawagai with heavy artillery and mortar guns. The security forces claimed to have dismantled the hideouts of militants in the actions. However, no casualty was reported in the attacks.In the meantime, Bajaur Agency Political Agent Shafirullah Khan along Bajaur Scouts Commandant Colonel Nauman Saeed and Assistant Political Agent Iqbal Khattak visited the far-flung areas of Salarzai tehsil. It was the first visit of the political administration officials since the writ of the state was re-established in the violence-hit areas of the agency.
The officials visited the remote areas of Pusht, Danqul, Ghaghay, Chargu and Nazakai areas where the political agent addressed the local people. He said the government had allocated huge funds for uplift of the tribal people to bring the areas on a par with the developed areas of the country.

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