Thousands of Pashtun civilians have been forced to flee their homes in Mir Ali, North Waziristan, as Punjabi Pak Army unleashes yet another wave of violence in the Pashtun region. This intensification of an undeclared war has left innocent civilians caught in relentless crossfire, uprooting entire families and compelling them to abandon their homes and livelihoods.
The so-called counterinsurgency efforts have drawn harsh criticism from Pashtun activists and locals, who accuse the Pakistan Army of perpetuating cycles of violence in the name of “security operations.” The current situation echoes the disastrous “Zarb-e-Azb” military operation, which displaced millions under the guise of eliminating terrorism but failed to achieve any peace. Instead, it further destabilized the tribal regions, leaving them vulnerable to militant resurgence and military excesses.
“The Pashtun homeland has become a battleground for the military’s disastrous ‘Project Taliban,’ which keeps our people condemned to perpetual conflict,” said a displaced resident of Mir Ali. The term “Project Taliban” refers to widespread notion that the Pakistan Army has nurtured and protected extremist groups for strategic purposes, a policy that has repeatedly backfired, causing immense suffering for ordinary Pashtuns.
The exodus from Mir Ali highlights that the Pak Army is targeting civilians rather than dismantling the terrorist infrastructure it is complicit in fostering. Entire villages have been left in ruins, with schools, hospitals, and markets destroyed under the pretext of “clearing operations.”
The Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a grassroots civil rights movement advocating for Pashtun rights, has repeatedly called out the army’s oppressive tactics in North Waziristan and beyond. From enforced disappearances to extrajudicial killings, the military’s actions have been described as an attempt to silence dissent and maintain control over the Pashtun regions.