British Army A British Indian Army camp was established at Razmak in January 1923, to accommodate the main British garrison of
Waziristan at a strategic location on the
North West Frontier and it became the base location for the
Razmak Brigade. This followed the
Waziristan campaigns of 1919–1920 and
1921–1924. The self-contained cantonment was capable of holding 10,000 men, and eventually contained gardens, sports pitches, a cinema, and a bazaar. New roads linking the garrisons and camps in the area were constructed to permit speedier troop movements around the area. The camp would be an important location for the British in terms of pacifying the surrounding region, and in the
Waziristan campaign of 1936–1939.
Mirzali Khan Stories about Haji
Mirzali Khan (Faqir of Ipi) are part of the folklore of the area. He was a tribal leader of
Waziristan who rebelled against the
British Raj, and started a guerilla warfare against the British. His movement was based in
Gurwek, a remote village in Waziristan on the border with Afghanistan. It is said that the troops were after him and when they fired at him, their bullets melted midway and fell on ground. This is said to be the origin of the many grey hard pebbles lying on the hills of Razmak where Mirzali Khan was hiding. After the creation of Pakistan in August 1947, Mirzali Khan and his followers refused to recognise Pakistan, and launched a campaign against Pakistan. He continued their guerilla warfare against the new nation's government. In 1950, he announced the creation of
Pashtunistan as an independent nation. A Pashtun tribal
jirga, held in Razmak, appointed Mirzali Khan as the President of the National Assembly for Pashtunistan. However, later on Faqir Ipi, while addressing a gathering at Razmak, said that the
Government of Afghanistan had misled him and deceived him in the name of
Islam. ==People==