KHYBER: Tribal elders from seven major tribes of Bara have launched a campaign to secure the due rights of the militancy-hit people of Bara and Tirah, particularly payment of compensation against the damage caused to their houses during the last two decades.

Addressing a press conference in Bara on Saturday, the elders said that majority of militancy-hit families in Tirah Valley and Bara were still awaiting compensation for their damaged houses despite their return to their areas in 2015-16.

They said that while some affected localities had already been surveyed for damage, nearly 70 per cent of the area was yet to be surveyed.

The elders also touched upon the sensitive issue of ‘missing persons’ and said that while hundreds of the local residents, mostly youth, were still untraced despite repeated efforts by their families, no clue to their whereabouts could be known for several years.

They demanded of the authorities concerned to inform the aggrieved families about the crime these persons had committed and then present them before a competent court for trial so that the parents and relatives could take a sigh of relief.

The Bara elders also demanded payment of the promised compensation to those who have either lost their lives or had sustained injuries in acts of terrorism.

They also called upon the provincial government to honour its commitments made with the displaced families of Tirah.

Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2026