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The sprawling Swat valley is home to nearly 6 million people. They are mainly Pushtuns, but there are other less known ethnic groups like Yousafzais, Kohistanis and Gujars.
Many Swatis work in tourism-related businesses, but the strife over the past two years has dealt a severe blow to tourism in the valley known as Switzerland of the East, depriving thousands of their source of bread and butter.
Others in the lush valley, which was an independent state governed under Shari`ah until 1970, work in farming. |
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Publish on: Mon., June 22, 2009
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| Swat, once a popular ski resort frequented by Westerners, has been making international headlines since the government effectively lost control to local Taliban two years ago.
A military offensive unleashed in April has reportedly killed hundreds of militants and sent many others underground.
But the offensive has also displaced nearly 2.5 million people and created a humanitarian crisis of a massive magnitude.
IslamOnline.net sent its Pakistan correspondent Aamir Latif to Swat on a special reporting mission, and he came with pictures depicting different aspects of life in the northwestern lush valley. |
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