Swat refugees in Pakistan

By Anders Hansson – In a refugee camp outside Peshawar, the provincial capital of the North Western Frontier Province, next to the recently torn down mud huts of the Afghan refugees, the tents spread out as far as the eye can see. People are arriving daily from the Swat Valley and neighbouring regions. They’ve left without belongings and tell stories of Taleban terror, how they had 24 hours to leave their homes and how they have seen everything they own turn into rubble during the military bombings.They see the governments agreement with the Taleban as a betrayal of the Pakistan people. – The Taleban will never settle for just the Swat Valley, they will try to take over the entire country. 500 000 people are expected to leave their homes in the Swat Valley in a near future. The International Red Cross is talking about a humanitarian crisis. At the same time US president Barack Obama is meeting with the Afghan and Pakistani Presidents to discuss how to fight their common enemies, the Taleban and al-Qaeda.