Word: swatting
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...among the vast stretches of land belonging to the Tarakais, where the family grows sugarcane, wheat, corn and very lucrative quantities of tobacco. The family also operates power projects and recently acquired the Pakistan franchise for Gloria Jean's, a café chain. It owns a tire factory in Swat's main town of Mingora, but like much else in the valley, it was seized by the Taliban. In recent years, Liaqat Tarakai has slowly pushed the family into the political arena. "We have no need of government help," he proudly declares. "We are self-sufficient." (See pictures of Pakistan...
...even here, refugees are facing difficulties seen elsewhere in the northwest. Though the camp tents are well protected against heat and even have fans inside, daytime temperatures nudge past the 100? mark. The people of Buner and Swat - who are more accustomed to cool mountain air - are suffering from dehydration, skin rashes, diarrhea and the mounting threat of disease. Dust has caused respiratory infections, and there are widespread psychiatric problems, doctors visiting the camps report. Aman's mother was one of 66,000 pregnant woman estimated by the U.N. to be among the displaced. A few tragically lost their babies...
...Fears have also been growing over the fate of up to 20,000 civilians trapped in Mingora, Swat's main town, as the army and the Taliban continue to battle each other street by street. In recent days, the army has claimed a flurry of successes: recapturing key intersections in Mingora, retaking Pakistan's only ski resort at Malam Jabba (which was being used by the Taliban as a training camp and logistics base) and clearing the former militant stronghold of Matta. Militants are now reportedly retreating from Mingora to Kabal. The army has made a push toward Kabal...
...Pakistan Refugees Flee Taliban Area Citing government steps to oust its fighters from the southern region of the Swat Valley, the Taliban ended a three-month truce May 5, prompting thousands of civilians to flee, fearing a renewal of violence. As many as 800,000 of the valley's 1.6 million residents are expected to evacuate, according to Khalid Khan Umerzai, a local commissioner, in what he said might be "the biggest displacement of Pakistanis since independence" in 1947. While the government has set up at least six refugee camps, officials are worried they will lack funds to support...
Tanks Rumbling North from Islamabad toward the Swat Valley, refugees fleeing in the opposite direction: from the TV footage, at least, it appears that the Pakistani military is finally taking the fight to the Taliban. It was probably no coincidence that the assault began as Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari arrived in Washington for a summit with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and President Barack Obama. Zardari brought a long wish list: he wants aid, military hardware and training...