By Abdullah Muntazir
No one knows what will be the final outcome of the ongoing military operation in Malakand division of Pakistan’s frontier province; however, one of the immediate consequences of the operation is that the number of internally displaced people (IDPs) has gone into the millions. The other outcome is that the Taliban, who were increasingly losing their credibility prior to the operation against them, have now received a chance to prove that they are victims of ‘America’s allies’, and they will most certainly exploit the collateral damage caused by military operation in their favor. Ever since 2004 when military operations first began in tribal areas, we can clearly see that after every military operation the Taliban only became stronger than before. I fear the results will be the same this time too, and the Pakistani military will only earn the outrage and hatred of the displaced people. In fact, the people of Swat have already begun to speak out against the military operation. They have now begun saying that we have become homeless not because of the activities the Taliban, but in fact, because of the military operation there. The military operation has not only made us homeless, but our beloved ones have fallen prey to the much-abused term ‘collateral damage’.
Read More!
