Amidst exodus, fresh air raids kill 30 militants

Number of displaced tribesmen reaches 300,000.

PESHAWAR/ ISLAMABAD:

The military claims to have killed 30 more terrorists in targeted air strikes in the tribal regions of North Waziristan and Khyber on Saturday morning.

Around 2am, fighter jets bombed and destroyed two hideouts of terrorists in an area close to the Pak- Afghan border in Khyber Agency, killing 10 terrorists, according to a statement issued by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media arm of the Pakistani military.

Three hours later, warplanes strafed three hideouts of militants in the Hassu Khel area of North Waziristan, where a massive military operation codenamed Zarb-e-Azb is ongoing since June 14.

According to ISPR, the hideouts were flattened and 15 terrorists were killed. It added that the air strikes were carried out in areas where there is no civil population.

Nearly 280 insurgents have been killed since the start of the operation on Sunday, according to security officials.



In another statement ISPR said all ranks of the Pakistan Army will donate one day’s salary for the tribesmen displaced by fighting in North Waziristan. “The army will also donate rations for their displaced tribal brethren to meet their immediate needs for the next 30 days,” it added.

The three-day deadline set by the political administration for Waziristan tribesmen to evacuate their areas before the launch of a full-scale ground offensive has been extended by a day.

“Evacuation of people from North Waziristan will continue till Sunday and every displaced family will be given Rs5,000 in cash at the Sedgai registration centre in Bannu district,” Additional Chief Secretary Fata Arbab Arif told a press briefing at the Officer’s Mess in Peshawar.

“Around 62,000 tribesmen were displaced before the launch of Operation Zarb-e-Azb.

As of today, the number of displaced tribesmen [officially designated as internally displaced persons] is 307,000,” he added. The number of IDPs is expected to increase as around 300,000 people are trapped in North Waziristan.

Arbab Arif said that 10 new waiting rooms and 20 more registration desks would be set up at the Sedgai registration centre to facilitate IDPs and expedite the process of registration. “For those who fled their homes in a hurry and couldn’t bring along their national identity cards, six mobile teams will be arranged to make new cards for them,” he said.

The chief secretary said the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government has pledged Rs3,000 house rent and Rs5,000 under a special Ramadan package for each of the families living out of the camps set up by the government.



Most of the civilians have fled into Bannu, Peshawar and Kohat, while some crossed over into neighbouring Afghanistan. However, Arbab Arif said around 50 families that had fled to Afghanistan have returned. “They have been sheltered in a camp set up in the Sadda area, Kurram Agency.”

He added that 25 families have been shifted to Thal tehsil of Hangu district.

In Bannu, an AFP correspondent saw hundreds of people walking on foot to the town.

The government-run children’s hospital in Bannu is overcrowded with children suffering from diarrhoea. Due to lack of space at the hospital, four to five children were being accommodated in one bed.

Around half a dozen children lying outside the hospital were being treated with the drip bags hanging from tree branches.

Registration points and camps have been set up to deal with the influx of people in Bannu, but many prefer to travel on to stay with relatives in other areas.

PM directs cash relief for IDPs

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday directed authorities to give cash relief to the displaced families at registration checkpoints. The prime minister also decided to do away with the use of smart card for transfer of immediate relief to the IDPs due to the urgency of the situation.

A committee, comprising representatives from the army, NDMA, PDMA and SAFRON will oversee the execution of this directive.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 22^nd, 2014.