People flee as army steps up operation in Orakzai

KOHAT: Exodus of people from the Orakzai Agency is gaining momentum as the military intensified air and ground assaults on hideouts of militants.

Security forces have entered upper and lower Orakzai from Shahu Khel in the Hangu district and Chappri Feroze Khel on the border with the Khyber Agency, respectively. Inaccessible parts are being regularly pounded by jets, gunship helicopters and artillery fire for 10 days.

Hundreds of displaced families who did not possess registration cards faced problems and remained stranded at different checkposts in Hangu and Kohat. These families were reportedly harassed at the Ustarzai police station located on the Hangu highway in Kohat and were sent back to Hangu with instructions to bring registration cards.

The government has established registration camps for the displaced people in Hangu, but has not made any arrangements to educate the tribesmen about the procedure. Most of the people are illiterate and unable to understand the compulsion of registration cards as they used to move freely in the region in the past.

They complained that the government should have dropped leaflets through helicopters and made announcements in mosques to tell them about the registration procedure.

Fazal Amin, the head of a displaced family from the Dabori area of upper Orakzai which was not being allowed to enter Kohat by police in Ustarzai, said they had left their home to take shelter with their relatives in Kohat and were not terrorists. He complained that the attitude of police and the civil administration had multiplied their woes.

Transporters also fleeced the people by raising the fare to Kohat by Rs100 and by Rs150 to Peshawar.

The displaced people demanded that the government should set up registration camps on Sumari and Ustarzai routes.

Contrary to the claims of the political administration of the Orakzai Agency that 1,100 families had left the tribal area, independent sources told Dawn at least 10,000 families had shifted to other areas since the start of the military operation 10 days ago.

The district administration has set up a small camp at the Government High School, Mohammad Khawaja, where only eight families have been registered, who are being provided with food items, except for sugar.