SWAT, Nov 7: Militants vacated the scenic Kalam valley in Swat on Wednesday apparently in view of a lukewarm response from the local people to their advance. At the same time there are reports that security forces have left the area.

Armed supporters of Maulana Fazlullah had moved to the valley in the morning after capturing the towns of Bahrain and Madyan.

They hoisted their flags on a police station which had been vacated by law-enforcement personnel.

“About 60 militants with heavy weapons arrived in the town in 10 vehicles and captured the abandoned police station,” a resident of the area told Dawn.

However, he said, elders of the Kohistani tribe immediately convened a jirga and asked the militants to leave because they themselves could control the area.

After the departure of the militants, a committee was formed to take care of the police station and public and private property.

Sources said that militants had consolidated their positions in Madyan and Bahrain.