Pakistan says uprooted civilians can return home next week (Roundup)

Jul 9, 2009, 14:10 GMT

   Islamabad - Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani Thursday announced that nearly 2 million people displaced by the military operation against the Taliban in the north-western region could start returning next week.

   'The displaced people will start going back from July 13 with honour. The special support group will finalize the strategy from today and will make a procedure for their return, security and other arrangements,' Gilani told reporters in Islamabad.

   However, the prime minister explained the military operation in Swat would not stop completely. 'There are some areas which need more military attention but the military action will be restricted to these areas.'

   Thousands of military and paramilitary troops launched a major offensive against Taliban militants in late April in Swat valley and three neighbouring districts after the Taliban violated a peace deal.

   According to the United Nations, the army assault displaced more than 1.9 million people.

   Around 85 per cent of the homeless are living with relatives or in rented houses across the country. The rest are staying in refugee camps and are taken care of by the Pakistani government, UN agencies and non-government agencies.

   The troops regained control of much of the area from the Taliban after eight weeks of intense fighting, eliminating over 1,700 rebels. Some 158 soldiers died and more than 548 were wounded in the clashes.

   An unknown number of surviving Taliban, including their local leader Maulana Fazlullah, have fled to the mountains and are expected to continue low-scale resistance.

   'The way occasional terrorist actions take place in the other parts of the country, Swat is also a part of Pakistan and some terrorist activities will also continue to occur there,' Gilani said, adding that the an army cantonment will be built there to ensure security in the area.

   The Swat operation enjoys vast public support and raised hopes in Washington that Pakistan could effectively handle the problem of extremism and terrorism.

   The government forces are also preparing for an offensive in South Waziristan, a lawless tribal district from which Taliban fighters launch cross-border attacks on US-led international forces in Afghanistan.

   On Thursday, Pakistani jets targeted a militant hideout in the district which is a stronghold of Taliban chief Baituallh Mehud. Five rebels were killed in the air-raid.

   Mehsud carries a five-million US bounty on his head as an al-Qaeda facilitator. He is also believed to be behind dozens of attacks on government and civil targets over the last two years in Pakistan.

   In the neighbouring tribal district of Orakzai, military helicopter gunships attacked five Islamist insurgent positions, leaving six Taliban dead and around a dozen injured, a local security official said.

   The Pakistani air-strikes come as the United States has stepped up missile attacks carried out by pilotless drone aircraft in South Waziristan.

   More than 50 militants, including 12 al-Qaeda-linked Uzbek guerrilla fighters, died in two separate air-raids on a hill-top militant hideout and a convoy in South Waziristan.

   The premier Gilani reiterated Pakistan's protest against the actions.

   'This is our own war (against Taliban and al-Qaeda). If they (the US) really want to help us, they should halt drone attacks,' he said on Thursday. 'These are counter-productive.'