2 Aug 2009

Schools re-open in NW Pakistan

10:56 am on 2 August 2009

Schools in north-west Pakistan are re-opening after an army offensive against the Taliban in the region.

North West Frontier Province education minister Qazi Asad said on Saturday that all schools in the Malakand division - including the Swat Valley - are open again. They had been closed for almost three months.

He said some 356 schools were damaged and authorities were working on an emergency plan to rebuild or hire other buildings.

Meanwhile, tents have been provided to hold temporary classes.

The United Nations says around 600,000 out of an estimated 2.2 million people displaced by the fighting across the northwest, have now returned home.

The UN also says most of the damaged schools are schools for girls.