GHALANAI: Tribesmen of militancy-hit Azad Kor area of Safi tehsil in Mohmand tribal district have demanded of the government to help them reconstruct their houses destroyed in the counter-terrorism operations 10 years ago.

Addressing a press conference in Mohmand Press Club on Wednesday, tribal elders, including Khan Bahader, Tafseer Khan, Gul Mohammad, Sadiq Shah, Fazli Wahid, Abdur Rahim, Jamal Shah and others, said that affected tribesmen of Azad Kor had not received any compensation for their damaged houses.

It is to be mentioned here that most of the Safi tehsil tribesmen were displaced when the army launched an operation against militants in 2007-08.

The tribesmen said most of their houses were either damaged or destroyed, adding at least 320 families had been displaced and were living in miserable conditions. They said their properties were lost but neither the government nor any non-governmental organisation conducted a survey to assess the damage.

They said the Azad Kor area was also without health and education facilities and there was no water and power supply. They said they had always cooperated with the government and rendered sacrifices for restoration of peace in the area, but were not helped in times of distress.

The tribal elders said they had taken up the issue of payment of compensation with the security forces and other government officials, but to no effect. They lamented that FDMA and district administration officials had promised to launch a damage-assessment survey in the militancy-affected area, but to no avail. The tribesmen demanded of the authorities to conduct a survey for the damaged houses in the area and compensate them without delay.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2019