More than 70,000 people, mostly women and children, have fled Tirah, a remote region in northwestern Pakistan near the Afghan border, amid fears of a military operation against the Pakistani Taliban (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP), residents and officials said Tuesday.
Authorities in Islamabad, however, deny that a full-scale operation is underway. Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif said harsh weather, not military activity, is driving the migration. Residents began fleeing after mosque loudspeakers warned them to leave by January 23 to avoid potential fighting.
Local authorities have registered roughly 10,000 families — about 70,000 people — at relief centers in Bara, with the registration deadline extended to February 5. Officials said displaced residents would be allowed to return once the law-and-order situation improves.
Shafi Jan, a spokesman for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government, blamed the federal government for creating confusion by retracting earlier statements about a possible military operation. Chief Minister Suhail Afridi, whose party is led by imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan, said his government would not permit a full-scale military operation in Tirah.
The Pakistani military said it will continue intelligence-based operations targeting TTP fighters, many of whom have crossed from Afghanistan into Tirah, sometimes using civilians as human shields.
Residents described the challenges of displacement, including heavy snow and food shortages. Among those fleeing were members of the minority Sikh community. Some cited recent attacks in the area — including mortar explosions that killed a woman and wounded children — as a reason for leaving.
Tirah previously drew national attention in September when an explosion at a compound reportedly storing bomb-making materials killed at least 24 people. While officials said most victims were militants, local leaders disputed that civilians were not affected.
