Displaced Swat Valley citizens await food and water in a refugee camp. Photo: bbcworldservice (Flickr)

As the Pakistani Army continues to defend the Swat Valley against Taliban insurgents, some of the millions of displaced residents are beginning to return home.

NPR's Julie McCarthy and Junaid Kahn report mixed feelings from those interviewed at the sweltering Jalozai camp. Some are excited to leave, looking forward to returning home with family and friends. The sister of Shaukat Ali, to modest to give her real name, is among those elated to settle back in Swat. She has "not spent a single contented day... Life here is nothing but helplessness."

But the majority of refugees aren't quite as elated to leave the relative security of the camp for the chaotic welcome they could to receive upon returning to their villages, reports the BBC. Earlier today I spoke with Holden Basch, Mercy Corps' Emergency Response leader in Pakistan, who reported that that in Buner, a district in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan, police officers and government officials aren't back to work yet.

Others aren't leaving until they receive their $300 check, a government stipend promised to all camp residents. Akhtar Muhammad is among those waiting for the money. He told NPR reporters that "If the government hasn't given us the resources here where the situation is normal, how can I expect them to give it to us in the middle of that confusion back home?"

The future of these refugees is still unknown — the Taliban that are reportedly still in hiding in the Swat are unhappy with the families who fled the area. According to the BBC, security outside of the central city of Mingora is uncertain, with potential for guerrilla attacks by the Taliban. But for some, home is preferable to cramped quarters, extreme heat, and limited food at the refugee camp, and so those who are ready board buses for an uncertain home in Swat Valley.

Barbers from the Swat Valley have more freedom in IDP camps than they did in their home towns under Taliban rule which found shaving off beards un-Islamic. Photo: Elias Pirasteh (flickr)

Barbers from the Swat Valley were forbidden to shave off the beards of their customers under Taliban rule, which condemned the practice as "un-Islamic." Since the Taliban took over the area, the Pakistani army has been trying to regain control over their territory. The resulting violence has made the beautiful and serene area a dangerous place to live. BBC News spoke to some of the men who fled the area, and are now living and working in camps for internally displaced people.

One of the barbers interviewed tells the BBC:

The Taliban threatened to attack the barber shops and their houses if they kept shaving customers' beards. Before the Taliban came along with their restrictions I used to do 15 to 20 shaves a day so as soon as they took over I saw my income plummet.

Most of these men want to return to their homes but also want the freedom to practice their livelihoods without the constant threat of violence. For now, the camps have become their home and source of income.

Read more about the Swat valley in Global Envision's post: The Economic Fallout From Pakistan's Taliban Troubles.

Picture of a refugee camp for Swat Valley civilians. Photo: Al Jazeera English (flickr)

Pakistan’s Swat Valley is currently at the epicenter of an armed conflict between the Pakistani military and the Taliban insurgents. While the Pakistani government predicts victory is imminent, the economic and humanitarian impact of this violence is likely to be felt for years to come.

Refugees from Pakistan’s Swat Valley have been leaving the embattled North West Frontier Province for many months. The situation reached a breaking point last December when Pakistani forces lost control of the region to Taliban fighters. Approximately 2.4 million are currently displaced, numbers that prompted the UN to warn that the situation is becoming "the world's most dramatic displacement crisis since the Rwandan genocide of 1994."

Such a massive human exodus has served to compound the already growing economic trouble in Pakistan. Inflation rates jumped from 7.7 percent in 2007 to 24.4 percent in 2008, paralleled by a shrinking rate of economic growth. (It's projected to be 2.5 percent in 2009, compared to about 6 percent for each of the last four years.)

The Swat Valley itself accounts for nearly 10 percent of Pakistan’s economy, stemming mainly from its large mining industry and the notoriously beautiful region’s tourist attractions. Since the conflict exploded last winter, tourism in the region has stopped altogether and industry has almost completely shut down. In addition, the China Post reports that instability in the region has led to a substantial decrease in small-business lending over the last few years because of the region’s instability.

The Swat Valley also borders the Sindh and Punjab provinces — the two most important revenue sources for the Pakistani government. In order to protect these areas, the government has placed nearly 70 percent of their military around their borders with the North Western Frontier Province, where the Swat Valley is located.

The Wall Street Journal notes that the armed conflict has already cost Pakistan about $35 billion. And the UN High Commission for Refugees estimates that at least $543 million is needed to maintain minimum health standards for those currently displaced.

TIME notes that when the humanitarian costs are tallied up with the costs of weapons, ammunition and the economic toll the conflict has taken on business and tax revenue, the hill Pakistan has to climb is incredibly steep.