Pakistanis displaced by military offensive seek refuge in Afghanistan --- KHOST, Afghanistan — Two weeks ago, a Pakistani soldier came to Mir Abat Khan’s home in North Waziristan and issued a stark threat: If you don’t leave your home, we will kill you. -- The Pakistani military was about to begin an offensive in the region targeting the Taliban, and Khan’s home was in the path of destruction. That’s how he ended up here — in a growing refugee camp in Afghanistan where he is waiting in line for a plastic tent and flour provided by the United Nations. -- Afghanistan is battling its own insurgency and is unaccustomed to this daily influx of refugees. The United Nations estimates that there are more than 75,000 in Khost province alone, living in a scrubby open field that is a two-day walk from their home across the border in Pakistan. -- Khan brought 12 family members on the trek. They left everything behind: their belongings, their food, two donkeys, three cows, 10 chickens. -- “We are here with nothing,” he said, “and we have no idea how long we will stay.” -- The Pakistani military operation in North Waziristan, aimed at clearing a longtime Taliban sanctuary, began with airstrikes. Then came what army commanders called a “house-to-house” search for terrorists. The offensive has displaced about a half-million people. -- As more of them cross into Afghanistan, officials here have grown concerned about their ability to provide for those refugees in a part of the country plagued by poverty and security problems. When the displaced Pakistanis first arrived, many of them had no shelter from the blistering sun and very little to eat. -- “We are just trying to survive,” said Omar Khan Wazir, another refugee. -- As the Pakistani military continues its offensive, it is likely that Afghanistan is serving as sanctuary to more than just civilian refugees. For years, Pakistani militants have sought refuge in Afghanistan — much as the Afghan Taliban does in Pakistan. -- “They’ve been able to find sanctuary on this side of the border. They are not targeted by our security forces, because they are not our enemy,” one former Afghan official said. - More, http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/pakistanis-displaced-by-military-offensive-seek-refuge-in-afghanistan/2014/07/02/d0e41cfc-c4ce-4330-aa46-7934fd481558_story.html