At least six militants were killed during ongoing military offensive in the Kurram tribal region on Thursday, sources said.
The militants were killed in a clash with security forces in the tribal region’s Marghan area, while security forces said that at least 14 suspects were held during a search operation in Chapari village in Lower Kurram. Security officials said they had so far captured three militant hideouts.
Meanwhile, locals were fleeing from Karat, Changi Banada and Dambaki areas in central Kurram to seek refuge in safer areas.
Mavaz Khan, a political administration official in Kurram, told reporters that at least 550 families had arrived in the Davrani camp in the Tando Sam area, near Sadda town in Lower Kurram.
He said that Unicef, Fata Disaster Management Authority (FDMA) and other agencies were helping to provide facilities to the displaced people. Local sources said that people from the Masozai, Dogar, Ali Sherzai and other areas were arriving in this camp in great numbers.
However, local elders said that as many as 3,800 people were living out in the open in the Darsmand area of the Hangu district, adding that no camp had been set up there.
Malik Toor Badshah, a tribal elder, urged the FDMA and international aid agencies to set up a camp in the area for the displaced people.
The military operation was launched on Monday to rid central Kurram of militants and to secure the Parachinar-Thall highway for means of transportation.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2011.
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