Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Boston Sunday Globe Omission: They Can't See a Refugee

Of course, they do get to it later; however, they omitted the figure the first day.

Why?


"Pakistani Army Retakes Swat Valley Town

(ISLAMABAD) — The Taliban have fled the Pakistani army's advance on the main town in the Swat Valley, delivering the military a strategic prize in its offensive against militants in the country's northwest, commanders said Saturday.

Taliban fighters had dug themselves into bunkers built into hotels and government buildings in Mingora, and initially offered stiff resistance as troops first closed roads leading to the town then began moving in earlier this week, army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas said.

Aid was being distributed to some of the estimated 20,000 who were trapped in Mingora, and water and gas supplies were being restored. But Abbas said it would be at least two weeks before power is switched back on, and refugees were not yet being encouraged to start returning to their homes. About 3 million people have fled the fighting in Swat, and the exodus has raised fears of a humanitarian crisis....

Government troops had been advancing steadily into the Swat region for about a month, bombarding towns from the air and fighting house-to-house with Taliban gunmen in some places.... Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira said the number of people uprooted from their homes by the fighting had reached "around 3 million," and that more than 190,000 of them were living in refugee camps. The rest are staying with relatives or relying on goodwill from local residents.

See: Pashtun Hospitality

The widespread domestic support for the campaign so far could sour if the government is perceived to have failed the refugees, or if a high number of civilian casualties is revealed....

I'm tired of the MSM double-talk, how about you?

--more--"

Related:
The Most Outrageous Question Ever Asked