The army should allow aid agencies into Pakistan's north-west to help those displaced by the military operation against the Taliban, politician Imran Khan has told the BBC.

Without such assistance his party's government in the region would not be able to cope.

He described the events of the last few weeks as an "unfolding human tragedy".

Officials say 750,000 people have left their homes since the offensive began three weeks ago.

The aim of the campaign is to drive the insurgents from their sanctuaries in North Waziristan.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif gave the go-ahead for the offensive after a deadly attack last month on Karachi airport, which was claimed by an Uzbek militant group and the Pakistani Taliban.

The military has said that tanks and troops are also being sent in for a full-scale operation to target Taliban and foreign militant networks based near the Afghan border.

The army says dozens of militants have been killed since it began air strikes but there is no way of confirming the figures independently.

Meanwhile, refugees have been streaming out finding shelter in the town of Bannu and with relatives in Pakistan as well as over the border in Afghanistan.

(BBC)