Swat will be reopened to tourists by November

[Naveed Yaseen]

MINGORA: The Swat valley will be reopened to tourists soon, Major General Ashfaq Nadeem said on Thursday.

Talking to reporters at the Circuit House, Nadeem— who is also head of military operations in Swat— said the security forces would handover most of the check-posts to local police by October 15. He said peace has been restored to Swat and the situation on the ground has improved a lot.

He said the provincial and the federal governments were backing the military operation and the army would restore the school buildings and other infrastructure destroyed by the militants. He said the government has decided to set up an army cantonment in Swat and many places have been identified for this purpose.

Nadeem said he wanted to get the message out that the valley was safe.

"We have asked the provincial government to arrange seminars on tourism and tell the people that militancy has subsided and tourists can come," he said. ghulam farooq/reuters

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