clipped from: www.herald.ie Refugees have given harrowing accounts of life under the Taliban in Pakistan's Swat Valley as they swarmed into camps to escape fighting between the army and militants.
They told how extremists ran roughshod in the area.
Teenager Kulsoom said she came across the body of a distant relative, his head severed and placed on his back -- punishment the Taliban claimed was for spying.
The Taliban's brand of Islamic law proved too harsh for many residents in the relatively conservative region of Pakistan and appears to be a major reason large numbers of the displaced support the military's latest offensive in the area.
Kulsoom (16), who gave just one name to protect her identity, said she left a housekeeping job that helped support her family because of growing Taliban restrictions on women's movements.