Refugee funds 'running short' in Pakistan

The UN warns that humanitarian efforts for Swat war refugees would have to be scaled down if the international community does not come up with financial assistance.

Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Islamabad said it had received only 22 per cent of the $543 million international aid appeal they had made for the internally displaced persons (IDPs).

The office also added humanitarian efforts would be facing severe problems in a couple of weeks if more money was not received.

The developments come after Pakistani army launched an operation named 'Black thunder' early this month claiming to be aimed at flushing out the militants from the restive valley and its adjoining districts.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates nearly 126-thousand people flee the fighting in the troubled northwest every day.

The clashes in Swat have pushed millions of terrified civilians into camps set up in various parts of the North West Frontier Province since May 2.

More than three million internally displaced people are now residing in temporary camps in the country's northwest.

UN officials in Islamabad have warned that a fund to help the refugees remained woefully short.

UN officials also on Thursday warned against potential disease outbreaks among millions of Pakistanis displaced by an army operation against the militants in Swat.

The massive displacement is Pakistan's biggest movement of people since the country secured independence from Britain in 1947.

Pakistan claims more than 1,350 militants and 86 soldiers have been killed in the over a month conflict.

Thousands of civilians are believed to be still trapped in the conflict zone. Human Rights Watch has warned of a large-scale human tragedy in the conflict-torn region.

Pakistan's army warns that the battle against insurgency in the troubled valley could take longer than previously thought. "It may be another two months when we can say the complete area is fully secured," chief military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas said Wednesday.