About 20,000 people have been displaced by a looming full-scale operation by the Pakistani military and ongoing airstrikes on militant hideouts in the troubled northwestern tribal region of North Waziristan, with nearly 100 fleeing into Afghanistan, an official said Saturday. After the killing of 23 Pakistani Frontier Constabulary (FC) soldiers by the Taliban, the Pakistani army is believed to launch a major offensive to root out militants from the restive North Waziristan, where dozens of rebels have reportedly been killed in recent airstrikes.
The United Nations refugee agency says of 20,000 displaced from the region, nearly 100 of them have acrossed the border into Afghanistan.
The Pakistani refugees are believed to have arrived in border villages of southeastern Khost province, which shares border with North Waziristan.
Nearly 100 people have crossed the border into Afghanistan from northern Pakistan, a UN spokesperson said on Friday.
Mohammad Akbar Zadran, administrative head of Gurbaz district, confirmed he had been informed that some Pakistani families had crossed the border into Afghanistan from North Waziristan.
UN Secretary General's spokesman Martin Nesriky said the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs was in contact with the authorities and was following the situation closely.
He said the Pakistani government had not requested international assistance, however some local non-government organisations were providing emergency aid including food supplies and medical assistance to the displaced.
The OCHA team in Afghanistan on Friday reported that more than 90 people had crossed the border from northern Pakistan into Afghanistan.
The United Nations refugee agency says of 20,000 displaced from the region, nearly 100 of them have acrossed the border into Afghanistan.
The Pakistani refugees are believed to have arrived in border villages of southeastern Khost province, which shares border with North Waziristan.
Nearly 100 people have crossed the border into Afghanistan from northern Pakistan, a UN spokesperson said on Friday.
Mohammad Akbar Zadran, administrative head of Gurbaz district, confirmed he had been informed that some Pakistani families had crossed the border into Afghanistan from North Waziristan.
UN Secretary General's spokesman Martin Nesriky said the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs was in contact with the authorities and was following the situation closely.
He said the Pakistani government had not requested international assistance, however some local non-government organisations were providing emergency aid including food supplies and medical assistance to the displaced.
The OCHA team in Afghanistan on Friday reported that more than 90 people had crossed the border from northern Pakistan into Afghanistan.



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