500,000 Civilians told to flee ahead of Pakistan offensive against Taliban

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http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/05/05/pakistan.taliban/index.html

Civilians told to flee ahead of Pakistan offensive against Taliban

updated 4:06 p.m. EDT, Tue May 5, 2009

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (CNN) -- Some 500,000 civilians are expected to flee

Pakistan's Swat Valley, heeding a government evacuation order issued Tuesday

ahead of an expected military offensive in the Taliban-dominated region.

Dr. Lal Noor Afridi said many people " panicked " when they heard the order and

quickly fled, including many women and children in the Swat town of Saidu

Sharif. At least 18 civilians were wounded in the town Tuesday, caught in the

crossfire between Taliban militants and government forces, he said.

They were treated at the main medical facility in Swat, Saidu Teaching Hospital,

where Afridi is the medical superintendent. He spoke to CNN from his home during

a curfew.

" I can hear shooting all around, " Afridi said. " The Taliban are in the streets. "

Watch as thousands flee military offensive »

The violence comes on the eve of a meeting between Pakistani President Asif Ali

Zardari and U.S. President Barack Obama.

Holbrooke, the U.S. special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan,

dismissed rumors Tuesday that the Obama administration is backing away from its

support for Zardari as he is tested by Taliban and al Qaeda extremists.

Taliban militants attacked a police station in Saidu Sharif shortly before 5

p.m. (7 a.m. ET), sparking a firefight that was still ongoing hours later,

according to an officer in charge of the station.

The officer spoke to CNN during the siege and did not want to be identified for

security reasons. He said a deputy inspector was killed during the attack.

The top civilian official in the region issued an order Tuesday for residents to

evacuate neighborhoods in and around the Swat district capital of Mingora, which

is flush with Taliban militants.

The militants are marching on the streets of the city, threatening the lives of

civilians, local administrators, and security forces, according to the Pakistani

military. See a map of Taliban-controlled areas »

Authorities in Swat lifted a curfew Tuesday between 1:30 and 7 p.m. to allow

residents to leave the area, Swat District Coordination Officer Khushal Khan

said. He noted that after Wednesday, " there will be no time " for evacuations.

For the last two weeks, Pakistani troops have battled Taliban fighters in Buner

and Lower Dir, two districts bordering Swat. Army generals claim to have killed

scores of militants.

The military is expected to broaden its offensive in Swat on Wednesday. The

government has ordered evacuations and banned the use of motorcycles, which are

commonly used by Taliban militants.

The provincial government is planning to set up six new camps for the influx of

displaced civilians, in addition to existing camps in and around Peshawar,

according to a North West Frontier Province spokesman.

The expected civilian exodus will add to the already massive displacement of

people in northwestern Pakistan. The United Nations estimates more then 50,000

civilians have fled the fighting in Buner, which is a little more than 60 miles

(100 kilometers) northwest of the Pakistani capital.

In an interview Sunday, Yahya Akhunzada, the district coordinating officer in

embattled Buner, said Pakistani forces probably will advance into Swat in coming

days.

" We are planning ahead toward the Swat Valley ... these are the areas which are

required to be cleared, " he said.

The fighting has spilled into other areas of Pakistan's tribal region. In the

Mohmand district on the Afghan border, militants attacked a security forces

checkpoint, prompting a firefight that killed 15 militants and two Pakistani

soldiers, the military said. Six other soldiers are missing after the attack in

Spinkai Tangi.