MIRANSHAH: The temporarily displaced persons (TDPs) of North Waziristan who have recently returned from Afghanistan, on Friday staged a protest demonstration in Miranshah in favour of their demands.

The protesting tribesmen said many people from North Waziristan tribal district had gone to Afghanistan during military operation Zarb-e-Azb and they returned after the conclusion of the operation against militants and return of peace to the area. They said the displaced persons returned through a legal procedure defined by the government, but they could not bring back their precious vehicles from Afghanistan.

The tribesmen said their many vehicles are still in Afghanistan and they have not been allowed to bring back their vehicles. They said the vehicles are parked in Afghanistan since long and the condition of the vehicles will deteriorate if not brought back and taken care of. They said the vehicles are parked under the open sky in Afghanistan as there is no proper parking facility there and the condition of the vehicles is deteriorating due to harsh weather conditions in the neighbouring country. The protesters said the vehicles in Afghanistan were properly registered with the government before their departure to Afghanistan. They said they requested the concerned authorities several times for bringing back their vehicles, but no one is helping them.

The tribal elders said they also held many Jirgas over the issue, but no Jirga proved fruitful. They said the employment of some of the poor tribesmen is associated with the vehicles stranded in Afghanistan and they should be allowed to bring back their vehicles to end their difficulties. They said so far not even a single vehicle has been brought back to Pakistan and the owners of the vehicles have been left with no other option than protest.

The tribesmen demanded the government to allow them bringing back their precious vehicles by August 05. They warned that they will block the Pak-Afghan Highway for all kinds of traffic if their demands were not accepted. They said the highway will remain closed till acceptance of demands and the responsibility of any untoward incident during the protest will rest with the government.