KHOST, Afghanistan (AP) – Tens of thousands of Pakistanis have sought shelter at a sprawling refugee camp in a volatile region of Afghanistan after crossing the mountainous border to escape a military onslaught against insurgents.
For decades Afghans have fled into Pakistan to escape war and upheaval, but in recent months the tide has reversed, with some 60,000 Pakistanis – more than half of them children – taking refuge in the Gulan camp, some 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the border in the restive Khost province.
“We knew the military operations would last a long time once they started,” said Malik Omardin, a tribal elder who came from the Pakistani town of Datta Khel. “It’s a mountainous area and the insurgents are very strong on their own territory, so the government will have a hard time finding and destroying the Taliban.”
More than 210,000 Pakistanis have crossed into Afghanistan from the neighboring North Waziristan province since the Pakistani military launched a long-awaited offensive in June against Taliban and other foreign militants, who have long used the lawless tribal region as a launch-pad for attacks in both countries.
Eastern Afghanistan is an unlikely refuge. Khost and neighboring Paktika, where most of the refugees have sought shelter, are among the most dangerous provinces in the country. Local security forces have struggled to combat the Taliban following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces, and the insurgents are expected to launch a fresh offensive in the spring.