Ilm Naz was forced to leave her grandparents behind when her family fled the conflict.

Like so many people unable to afford the extortionate rates car owners have been charging to ferry people safely away from fighting in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province (NWFP), Wakeel and his family made the dangerous 25-mile journey through the mountains on foot.

Wakeel, a former school teacher, and his wife gathered their two daughters, Faiza, 1, and Ilm Naz, 5, and fled on May 1. They had to leave the girls' grandparents behind because they were too frail to make the difficult journey.

The journey was sweltering and dusty, and Faiza's small body was badly blistered by the sun.

Today the family — along with 12 other people — is staying in a distant relative's one-room house in a remote village in Swabi District. The head of the host family is a laborer and can barely afford to feed them all.

Faiza's mother said: "We left our home in a hurry and didn't bring anything along. My daughters only have one pair of clothes — and they are dirty now and irritate them."

Save the Children is supporting thousands of children like Faiza and Ilm Naz who have been displaced by the conflict in northern Pakistan. The agency is directing its assistance to families living outside of established camps, providing essential household and hygiene items.

"The household and hygiene kits have provided us what we needed for daily use, like bathing and washing clothes," said Faiza's mother. "My children can now eat from clean plates."

Donate to the Pakistani Children in Crisis Fund.

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Last Updated May 2009