Reports started pouring, a few days back, regarding a large number of civilians killed during a military operation in Khyber Agency's Tirah valley. The number of casualties, which was in the beginning reported to be sixty, was later raised to 73. According to an HRCP representative in the area, quoted by an Urdu national daily, the number could be as high as 92, including six women and 26 children.
On Tuesday, political leaders of Khyber Agency, tribal elders and hundreds of tribesmen participated in a protest demonstration, which started from Bab-e-Khyber and culminated in Jamrud tehsil. The demonstrators called on the government to tender an official apology for the "killing of innocent tribesmen". They said they had been disappointed by the death of so many civilians in bombings.
The leaders of the Kukikhel, a sub-tribe of the Afridis, also condemned the incident. Initially an army spokesman had denied that any of the dead were civilians and maintained that the army had intelligence that militants were gathering at the site. This was vehemently contested by the local elders who claimed that a house belonging to a family, whose members are serving in the army and militia, was targeted by two fighter jets who dropped bombs on it.
They also claim that most of casualties took place during the second bombing incident, which occurred when people from the area were removing the dead and the injured from the debris. Casualties also increased as the injured had to be shifted to hospitals in Jamrud and Peshawar through difficult hilly areas and many succumbed to their injuries on the way.
A report now reveals that the Governor having offered his apology to the affected families, while ordering the payment of Rs 10 million as compensation to the affected families and individuals. Khyber Agency, in general, and its Tirah valley, in particular, have been used as havens by extremists of all sorts during the last couple of years.
The Taliban set up training camps here and used the area as a launching pad for suicide bombings in and around Peshawar. After the Lashkar-e-Islam and Ansar-ul-Muslimeen, that had fought pitched battles against one another with sophisticated weapons, were made to vacate their strongholds in Bara in Khyber Agency, they too shifted their headquarters to Tirah.
During the last few months, scores of innocent people have died in the valley as a result of the infighting between these two armed outfits. Militants belonging to various organisations have destroyed several schools and dispensaries, conducted suicide attacks and attacked paramilitary forces.
In February, they killed an army Brigadier and injured two other officers who were in the area on a rescue mission, after the crash of a military helicopter. After the army succeeded in establishing control over Damadola in Bajaur in early March, it was decided to initiate a military operation in Orakzai Agency.
The operation forced scores of militants to take shelter in the neighbouring Tirah valley. This, presumably, led the army to step up attacks in the area. The army faces a complicated situation. It has been ordered to deal with the militants who have established their strongholds amidst civilian population.
This requires that operations be conducted with extreme care. Any blunder can lead to a humanitarian disaster, which can cause a wave of resentment in the area and alienate the local population. This suits the militants, as they know that no anti-insurgency campaign can succeed if it does not have local support. Drone attacks are widely condemned because of the collateral damage they cause.
If the weapons used to fight the militants produce similar or worse results, local support for the army operation could erode. Even the Nato-led troops hold an inquiry into such incidents in Afghanistan. A high-level military inquiry is needed, all the more, when the operation is conducted by a national army. If it is found, during the probe, that a blunder has been committed, it should be owned and measures taken to avoid its repetition. This would add to the army's credibility. Rumours are bound to spread and misgivings created if it is seen that attempts are being made to hush up the affair.