Defence Minister Khawaja Asif Denies Military Operation in Tirah Valley

Islamabad :Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday dismissed reports of a military operation in Tirah Valley, stating that no such operation has occurred in the area for several years. He clarified that recent population movements are part of a routine, seasonal migration linked to harsh winter conditions.

“There has been no operation in Tirah Valley for many years. These are all assumptions,” Asif said during a press conference in Islamabad, flanked by Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Information and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Affairs Ikhtiar Wali Khan.

He explained that migration from Tirah and other valleys along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border is an annual occurrence during the winter season. “During snowfall, people migrate from valleys located along the Pak-Afghan border. Migration from the Tirah Valley also takes place every year,” he noted.

The defence minister expressed concern that the routine migration was being portrayed as a crisis. He added that the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government had allocated Rs4 billion to support displaced families and that the relocation notification was issued after consultations with local jirga members, who also agreed to establish schools and police stations in the area.

Asif also mentioned that jirga members had met with proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) members on December 11, followed by discussions with the KP chief minister. He estimated that around 400 to 500 TTP members, along with their families, are present in Tirah, but stressed that intelligence-based counterterrorism operations continue and that the armed forces deployed in the area are not involved in the relocation.

Highlighting local tensions, Asif pointed to illegal activities such as cannabis cultivation, which spans approximately 12,000 acres in Tirah Valley, generating an estimated income of Rs3.5 million per acre.

The defence minister offered to take journalists to Tirah Valley to witness the situation firsthand, emphasizing that the government remains committed to transparency regarding the seasonal migration and the broader situation in the region.