Turkish Weekly : Mass Exodus in N. Waziristan

Mass Exodus in N. Waziristan

Aamir Latif | IOL Correspondent | IslamOnline.net & News Agencies | October 10, 2007

MIRAMSHAH, North Waziristan — Thousands of panicked families have fled North Waziristan to escape the raging fighting between government troops and local Taliban militants in the troubled area.
"I don't want myself or my family members to be dead," Noor Khan, a resident of Miramshah, the capital of North Waziristan, told IslamOnline.net on Wednesday, October 10.

"That is why I am leaving the area."

Up to 250 people have been killed, including 75 troops and 65 civilians, since the fighting first started on Saturday, October 6, after militants ambushed an army convoy in the area.

Some 110 militants have also been killed in army airstrike at their hideouts, according to Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR).

"I have personally seen the bodies of many soldiers and civilians. The stench of death has settled down in my mind," Khan said.

"I don't think so I can love here any more," he said while packing to move to Dera Ismail Khan town where his brother lives.

Pakistani troops and militants observed an unofficial ceasefire Wednesday as thousands of tribesmen buried 50 people killed in the fighting between the army and local militants.

Sandwich

Khan is among thousands of families fleeing the area over the bloody battles and airstrikes.

"Everything is safe there (north Waziristan) except human life.

"We don't know who should we stand alongside, Army or militants? We have become sandwich between them."

Abdul Waheed, a local resident, told a local TV channel that he has counted more than 60 dead and more than 150 wounded.

Many of the bodies were mutilated.

"Some did not have heads, hands or legs. Some people were searching for their children and women," he said.

Residents said dozens of civilians, including women and children, were killed in the army attacks.

Desperate locals used mosque loudspeakers to beg the military not to fire at their homes.

Army spokesman Major General Waheed Arshad admitted civilians were caught in the middle.

He said some houses which were being used by militants to attack security forces were targeted and some locals may have died.

Arshad vowed that the army would continue its operations until security and order are restored.

Shuttling

For many locals the on-and-off battles between the government and militants has become part of the life routine.

"We have become shuttle cock between our homes and other (safer) places," said Mashal Khan, who runs a small shop in the main bazaar of Mir Ali town.

He is taking his wife and four children to nearby Bannu town, 40 kilometers away, for safety.

"For a month or two, we reside at our homes, and for next few months we have to shift to other places to save our lives."

Mir Ali town is considered a strong hold of pro-Al Qaeda Uzbek militants.

Khan said that most of Mir Ali residents have fled their homes after more than 50 houses were damaged in the fighting.

"The town has been under virtual curfew since the clashes broke out and troops have cordoned off the main market and sealed off the town," he noted.

"Our homes have been badly damaged, and most of the families have migrated to relatives' homes in neighboring towns."

Mashal, who has fled his home for three times since the beginning of this year because of fighting, has no idea what to do.

"I have very limited options. I want to shift from here on permanent basis, but no one is ready to buy my shop and house as the property prices have shot down to almost 400 percent."