Roofs of Houses Removed in Waziristan to Find Terrorists Aerially

The Pakistani military said the area has been cleared of its last militant stronghold in South Waziristan.

House after house flicks by, hundreds of feet beneath a military helicopter, many distinguished by one arresting feature: their roofs have been removed by the army to allow an “aerial view” of militants who may take refuge there.

South Waziristan was once a stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban, but the military says the region in the country’s mountainous northwest has been cleared of its last militant stronghold.

The houses of the thousands of displaced families have been damaged by weather, said a military official who flew with media on the army-controlled helicopter trip earlier this month over the towns of Makeen, Ladha and Kanigurm. But not all.

(The) military has removed the roofs of the houses to have a better aerial view and stop militants taking refuge in these abundant, fort-like mud houses.

Military Official told reporters

Though it was unclear how many had been removed by the military and how many had been damaged by the weather and fighting.

The Rah-e-Nijat operation was launched by the military against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its then-leader Baitullah Mehsud in 2009, displacing more than 72,000 families, according to the military.

Seven years later, the district, part of Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on the border with Afghanistan, welcomed some 42,000 families, with another 30,000 expected by the end of 2016. But the lack of shelter, residents warn, will be a serious issue.

Traditionally, roofs in South Waziristan are built of wood and iron sheets to hold off heavy winter snows, but from the helicopter, hundreds could be seen with their wooden skeletons bared and interiors exposed.

The government says it is providing up to 400,000 rupees (USD 4,000) to families for rebuilding their homes.

400,000 rupees is not a sufficient amount even to build one room. My family, especially women, are anxiously waiting to go back but it may not be possible.

Haji Muhammad, 55, a tribal elder from Makeen. 

When asked if the funds allocated were enough to rebuild a house, Head of Development Colonel Muhammad Imran said:

I can’t answer that question.