Regional
Pakistan army orders evacuation of Tirah Valley, fears of mass displacement grow
The Pakistan Army has issued a warning to residents of the Tirah Valley in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to vacate their homes by January 25, as security forces prepare to launch a new military operation in the area, Pakistani media have reported. The announcement has triggered growing concerns over large-scale displacement and humanitarian challenges, particularly amid the harsh winter season.
According to the reports, residents have been given one week to leave the region ahead of the planned operation. Pakistan’s federal government has pledged financial assistance to affected families, stating that each household will receive 250,000 Pakistani rupees after biometric registration at centers set up by the provincial disaster management authority. Families will also be allowed to relocate to Peshawar or other tribal districts.
Officials said displaced families will receive a monthly allowance of 50,000 rupees until April. In addition, compensation of one million rupees has been promised for partially damaged homes, while families whose houses are completely destroyed during the operation would be paid three million rupees.
However, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provincial government, led by the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, has openly opposed the military operation. Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, who visited Tirah on Thursday, reiterated that military action is not a solution to the province’s security challenges.
“This forced displacement is the result of the so-called ‘closed-door policy,’ which is driven by political interests rather than genuine security concerns,” Afridi said. “After 22 major operations and nearly 14,000 smaller ones, peace has still not been achieved. What guarantee is there that this operation will bring security? Tirah is my home, and its people are my people.”
Meanwhile, thousands of families who have already fled or are preparing to leave their ancestral homes have expressed deep concern over their uncertain future. Residents say spending freezing winter nights without adequate shelter, healthcare, or access to education will create serious immediate and long-term hardships. Some have also complained of deliberate obstacles in the registration and aid distribution process.
Pakistan’s central government estimates that the operation could displace around 100,000 people.
Analysts note that a similar military operation in 2013 displaced nearly 11,000 families from Tirah, who were allowed to return about a year later. During that period, the army established extensive military installations in the area, yet lasting security was not achieved.
Some security experts are also examining the “closed-door” policy from another perspective, arguing that Tirah’s strategic location—bordering Afghanistan and rich in forests and mineral resources—makes it a sensitive area. They warn that instability could create conditions conducive to the movement or relocation of militant groups, including the Daesh.
The situation continues to draw attention as residents, political leaders, and humanitarian observers call for alternatives to military action and greater protection for civilians facing displacement.
Regional
Iran says outcome of Israeli elections ‘makes no difference’
Tuesday’s legislative elections will take place amid mounting threats by Israel and the United States to renew attacks on Iran after they launched their war in late February.
Iran’s foreign ministry said Monday that the outcome of the Israeli elections in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing a tight race will make “no difference”, AFP reported.
“It makes no difference to us who, in these elections, takes the helm of a regime that has brought nothing but violence and massacres to our region,” said ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei in a weekly press briefing.
Tuesday’s legislative elections will take place amid mounting threats by Israel and the United States to renew attacks on Iran after they launched their war in late February.
Netanyahu has in recent days repeatedly said the only way to remove the threat posed by Iran is to topple its government.
On Sunday, he told Israel’s Channel 14 that he had “instructed the Mossad and the IDF to overthrow the Iranian regime”.
Baqaei dismissed Netanyahu’s remarks as “empty threats” and a “sign of desperation”.
Regional
Officials from Mecca pact countries to meet Iranian officials in Tehran
Pakistan’s military media wing and Turkey’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Top officials from Mecca Pact countries Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan are to meet Iran’s leaders in Tehran on Monday in their first high-level contact since the kingdom became a pressure point in the wider Iran conflict, Reuters reported.
Saudi Arabia will be represented by Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, Pakistan by army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Turkey by intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin, Saudi and Iranian officials said.
Attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have spiralled in recent weeks and rhetoric between Washington and Tehran has grown more heated. Both countries have also drawn up plans to restart the wider war, possibly after the US midterm elections on November 3.
Monday’s planned talks will be the first high-level contact between Iran and all members of the three-nation bloc since Saudi Arabia was drawn deeper into the conflict. Under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement signed in August, an armed attack on one member is considered an attack on all.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday discussions on regional security would include “Israel’s expansionist policies, developments in the Palestinian territories and Lebanon, and the repercussions of US and Israeli military action against Iran.”
Baghaei said the meeting, proposed during a visit by Munir to Tehran last week, could be a first step towards establishing regional security mechanisms based on the interests of countries in the region.
Qatari mediators met Iranian officials in Tehran on Sunday in a push to de-escalate regional tensions, Reuters reported. Qatar has, for months, played a mediating role between Tehran and Washington.
A senior Iranian official said the meeting was initiated by Pakistan, during Munir’s visit to Tehran, as he met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and other senior officials. During the visit, Iranian officials told him there would be no talks with Washington until Tehran’s demands were met, according to Iranian media.
Earlier mediation efforts involving both Pakistan and Qatar helped produce an interim peace agreement in June, but the deal quickly unravelled as fighting between Iran and the United States resumed weeks later.
The deputy secretary of Iran’s top security body, Ali Baqeri-Kani, told state TV that Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid, Pakistan’s Munir and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin would visit Tehran for consultations with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on regional security.
Saudi Deputy Minister for Public Diplomacy Rayed Krimly said the meeting is part of ongoing efforts by the Mecca Pact countries to de-escalate the current crisis, promote diplomatic solutions, and support mediation efforts led by Qatar and Pakistan.”The visit also underscores the pivotal role of the Mecca Pact states in fostering regional security and stability, and their commitment to working with all nations in the region toward achieving this goal,” Krimly posted on X.
Pakistan’s military media wing and Turkey’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Saudi Arabia intercepted another wave of missiles and drones on Sunday as fighting with the Houthis continued unabated.
Ministers from the Mecca Pact countries held an emergency meeting in Riyadh earlier this month and agreed to ensure the “rapid deployment” of military forces and capabilities in Saudi Arabia.
The Houthi attacks have become an increasingly destabilising element in the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, turning US ally Saudi Arabia into a pressure point in the wider war.
Tensions between Washington and Tehran have sharpened in recent days. President Donald Trump said on Friday the US may carry out another military operation against Iran and Iran’s leaders have said that a renewed US military campaign would be met with a stronger response than before.
Iranian security officials have told Reuters that Tehran has drawn up detailed plans to hit Gulf undersea cables if the United States and Israel attack again. A US intelligence memo this week warned that Iranian plots against American personnel had reached “advanced stages”.
The war, now nearly eight months old, has weighed on President Donald Trump’s approval ratings ahead of the midterms.
The Mecca agreement’s first article says the parties shall use “all necessary means” to eliminate threats to one another’s territorial integrity, sovereignty or internationally recognised borders, according to a text seen by Reuters.
Efforts by Turkey’s parliament to ratify the agreement began last week and are still underway, while Pakistan approved the pact last week.
Regional
Iran tells Pakistan army chief no talks with Washington until demands are met
The demands include ending a US blockade on its ports, the lifting of sanctions on its oil exports as well as ending hostilities on all regional fronts.
Iran told Pakistan’s army chief on Tuesday that there would be no talks with Washington until Tehran’s demands were met, Iranian media reported, underscoring its hardening stance despite mediation efforts by key interlocutor Pakistan.
President Masoud Pezeshkian discussed mediation efforts and regional developments with Field Marshal Asim Munir in Tehran, according to Nournews.
Pakistan is a key intermediary between the United States and Iran. Earlier mediation efforts helped produce an interim peace agreement in June, but the Islamabad Memorandum quickly unravelled as fighting between Iran and the US resumed weeks after.
Munir also met Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, who said Washington could not regain Tehran’s trust until it fulfilled seven conditions Iran set last month for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, according to an Iranian readout of the meeting.
The demands include ending a US blockade on its ports, the lifting of sanctions on its oil exports as well as ending hostilities on all regional fronts.
Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, delivered a similar message during a separate meeting with Munir, saying there would be no talks with Washington until Tehran’s demands were met, according to Iranian media.
Rezaei also said all enriched nuclear materials would remain in Iran, reiterating Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s position that near-weapons-grade uranium should not be shipped abroad.
US Vice President JD Vance said earlier this month that Iran must make a “meaningful” reduction in its uranium enrichment capacity to satisfy US demands and end the countries’ eight-month-old war.
Israel, the United States and other Western states have long accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, including pointing to its move to enrich uranium to 60%, far higher than needed for civilian uses and closer to the 90% needed for a weapon.
Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons.
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