What happened
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday, 27 January 2026, that there was no question of a military operation in the Tirah Valley of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where residents had been leaving their homes in recent days amid fears of an army offensive against militants. He spoke at a press conference in Islamabad alongside Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister for Information and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Affairs Ikhtiar Wali Khan, as reported by Dawn.
The government’s position
Asif said members of the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had been living in Tirah with their families and numbered “around 400-500”. He said the provincial government had approved a package of Rs4 billion for the people of the valley who were to migrate, and held up a notification he attributed to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government.
“The armed forces deployed in that area have nothing to do with it. This is an arrangement between the jirga and the provincial government, and as a result of that, this notification was issued,” he said.
The defence minister said a military operation had been carried out in the area years earlier, and that it was then decided strategically that intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were more effective than large operations and caused less collateral damage. “The armed forces have stopped the operation since years now in favour of the IBOs,” he said, adding that migration in the valley was a routine practice.
Criticism of the province
Asif also criticised the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s record in the valley, citing a lack of hospitals, schools and police stations. He said there was a “complete absence of civilian law enforcement agencies” in Tirah and that “there is no police station there”. He said it had been agreed between the provincial government and the jirga that hospitals, police stations and girls’ schools would be established there.
Why it matters
The remarks followed days of displacement from Tirah and an exchange of blame between the centre and the provincial administration over who was responsible. Dawn’s editorial argued that instead of trading blame, both governments should address the plight of residents. The episode has renewed scrutiny of counter-militancy policy in the former tribal districts, where officials say IBOs have largely replaced large-scale operations.
What is still uncertain
The government’s account leaves several questions open. It did not publish the full text of the Rs4 billion package or say how many families had left or how long the migration was expected to last. Nor did it detail the terms of the arrangement with the jirga. The provincial government has not responded in full to the federal criticism, and it remains unclear how the promised hospitals, police stations and schools would be funded and staffed.
Sources & reporting notes
This is a synthesis of published material, not eyewitness reporting. Sources were reviewed on 27 January 2026.
- Dawn — No question of military operation in Tirah, govt saysPublished 27 January 2026 · Contemporaneous report: confirms the press conference by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, the presence of Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Ikhtiar Wali Khan, the estimate of "around 400-500" TTP members in Tirah, the Rs4 billion provincial package for migrating residents, and the minister's criticism of the provincial government.
- Dawn — Tirah displacement (editorial)Updated 27 January 2026 · Context on the evacuation and displacement and the dispute between the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa administration and the centre over responsibility.