Pakistan's Growing Refugee Crisis

Pakistani army soldiers patrol a street during a military operation against Islamic militants in Darra Adam Kheil September 29, 2008. Pakistani security forces have launched a major offensive against the militants in Darra and several other tribal areas to combat rising militancy in the northwest. REUTERS/Ali Imam (PAKISTAN)

U.N.: 20,000 Flee From Pakistan To Afghanistan
To Avoid Fighting -- USA Today

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Fighting between Pakistani troops and militants in a tribal region has forced some 20,000 Pakistanis to seek refuge across the border in eastern Afghanistan, the U.N.'s refugee agency said Monday.

Nearly 4,000 families have fled Pakistan's Bajur tribal agency into Afghanistan's Kunar province, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement.

Bajur is the most northerly of Pakistan's wild tribal regions, several of which have fallen largely under the control of militants opposed to the Afghan and Pakistani governments.

According to Pakistani officials, the fighting in Bajur has displaced as many as 500,000 people. Most have found shelter with relatives across northwestern Pakistan, though about 100,000 have taken refuge in camps set up by Pakistani authorities.

Pakistan's army claims to have killed more than 1,000 militants in the two-month-old offensive in Bajur. It has declined to estimate casualties among civilians.

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Update: UN: Thousands flee violent Pakistani border area -- Yahoo News/AP

My Comment: I have said this many times ..... but this problem is only going to get worse.