UN assists tens of thousands of civilians fleeing the conflict in South Waziristan in Pakistan

(Islamabad/New York, 24 October 2009): As tens of thousands of civilians continue to flee the fighting between the Pakistan armed forces and militants in South Waziristan, the United Nations and their humanitarian partners are providing essential assistance, services, and support to those displaced by the conflict. The aid provided includes registration to assess the numbers and needs of the displaced civilians, food rations, vaccination for children, household items and hygiene kits, and access to drinking water.

"Those leaving South Waziristan have travelled over a forbidding terrain, with limited supplies and in conditions of fear and hardship," says Martin Mogwanja, the Humanitarian Coordinator for Pakistan. "As displaced civilians reach areas of relative safety, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners are working to make sure that they have the support - even simple necessities, from food and water to blankets and health protecting vaccines - to weather this terrible time."

So far, about 139,000 people have fled fierce fighting in the remote border Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Area (FATA) and have taken refuge in the neighbouring Districts of Dera Ismail Khan and Tank in NorthWest Frontier Province (NWFP). Over 57,600 have been registered in those two districts in the past ten days. The internally displaced persons (IDPs) from South Waziristan are living in host communities, with friends and families, or in rented homes, as has been the pattern with other recent conflict displacement in Pakistan. At present no camps have been set up in the two hosting districts, however should this be needed in the future, the humanitarian community stands ready to assist with tents, sanitation and other facilities.

As international aid organisations have no direct access to the conflict areas in South Waziristan, humanitarian assistance is delivered through local partners in D.I. Khan and Tank.

To date, UN agencies and their partners have distributed over 1,000 tonnes of food. About 30,000 people have benefited from a distribution of household items, while 35,000 have received hygiene kits to prevent the spread of disease in these difficult, congested conditions. By rehabilitating water supplies and installing hand pumps, humanitarian agencies have ensured that 45,000 displaced people have access to safe water.

Many of the children have never been vaccinated, and measles immunisation campaigns have already reached over 180,000 children, both from IDP and host community families.

While security restrictions limit access and, if continued, could eventually lead to interruptions of aid , the United Nations has additional supplies and resources to support its local partners to expand humanitarian assistance, help more people and provide support in education, nutrition and the protection of the most vulnerable in the weeks to come.

The humanitarian community in Pakistan calls upon all parties to the conflict to observe International Humanitarian Law and its principles of distinction between civilians and combatants, and of proportionality in the means and methods of warfare. Observing these two principles is essential to minimise the impact on civilians. In particular, attacks on civilians are absolutely prohibited and civilians have to be granted safety and safe passage. Furthermore to ensure the continuation of assistance, it is essential that humanitarian organisations have safe access to IDPs and the conflict area in order to assess the needs and respond to them timely, concretely and independently.

For further information, please call:

OCHA Pakistan: Billi Bierling, mobile +92 300 850 2397, bierling@un.org;

OCHA New York: Stephanie Bunker, + 1 917 367 5126, mobile +1 347 244 2106, bunker@un.org;
Nicholas Reader, +1 212 963 4961, mobile +1 646 752 3117, reader@un.org

OCHA-Geneva: Elizabeth Byrs, +41 22 917 2653, mobile +41 79 473 4570, byrs @un.org

OCHA press releases are available at http://ochaonline.un.org or www.reliefweb.int

The mission of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is to mobilize and coordinate effective and principled humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors