Buner District

The Buner Valley lies between Swabi to the South and Swat to the North. It is a valley dotted with villages and divided into four sub-divisions. The Mora Hills and the Ilam range divide it from the Swat Valley, while the Sinawar range from Yusafzai, the Guru mountains from the Mardan Valley, and the Duma range from the Puran Valley.^[11]

During the 1580s, a significant uprising against the Mughal Empire took place among Yusufzai people.^[12] In late 1585, Mughal Emperor Akbar sent military forces under Zain Khan Koka and Birbal to crush the rebellion. In February 1586, near the Karakar Pass, about 8,000 Mughal soldiers, including Birbal, were killed by the Yusufzai lashkar, led by Kalu Khan. This was the greatest disaster faced by the Mughal Army during Akbar's reign.^[13]

Throughout the 19th century, the inhabitants of Buner stood up twice against the British Raj during the Ambela Campaign and their rebellion in the 1897 Frontier Revolt.^[14]

In April 2009, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan seized control of Buner after a short battle with the local residents^{[citation needed]} and began imposing strict regulations, which reportedly included the closure of video stores, mandates against trimming beards, and restrictions on women's presence in various public spaces.^[15] On 29 April, the Government of Pakistan responded to the Taliban by deploying the army to the region, even employing parachutists delivered via helicopters.^[16] By the end of May 2009, almost whole Buner was liberated from the Taliban's grip.^[17]

On the morning of August 15th, 2025, a cloudburst occurred in Beshonai village of Buner, causing more than 150 mm of rain in one hour only. ^[18] This led to flash floods in the district. Other villages affected severely included Pir Baba, Qadar Nagar, and Chagharzi. ^[19]

The destruction caused by the flash flood was devastating. More than 200 people tragically lost their lives in Buner alone. Entire families were wiped out along with their homes when the Beshonai village was hit by giant rocks that were forced down from a mountain by the intense cloudburst. ^[20]

In the aftermath of the flood, the KP government released PKR 150 Million to cater to the immediate needs of the situation. Afterwards, the government raised PKR 500 Million for Buner. ^[21]

As of the 2023 census, Buner district has 118,665 households and a population of 1,016,869. The district has a sex ratio of 99.90 males to 100 females and a literacy rate of 43.75%: 60.61% for males and 27.40% for females. 310,484 (30.54% of the surveyed population) are under 10 years of age. The entire population lives in rural areas.^[4]

At the time of the 2023 census, 95.91% of the population spoke Pashto and 2.07% Hindko as their first language.^[23]

The main ethnic groups in Buner district are:

• Gujjar^[24]
• Chitarali
• Jadoon
• Tanoli
• Pashtun

Religion in Buner District

Religion	2017[25]		2023[26]
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam	894,058	99.84%	1,013,575	99.70%
Hinduism	246	0.03%	141	0.01%
Christianity	23	~0%	1,872	0.18%
Sikhism	—	—	1,023	0.10%
Others	1,133	0.13%	63	0.01%
Total Population	895,460	100%	1,016,674[a]	100%

Buner District is subdivided into 6 Tehsils:

This district is represented by one elected MNA (Member of National Assembly) in Pakistan National Assembly. Its constituency is NA-28.^[29]

The district has three constituencies in the Provincial Assembly of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa^[30] and one in the National Assembly of Pakistan.

• University of Buner

• Torwarsak is the most populated town in Buner which had population of about 35,165 in 2018.^[31]

  

• Totalai is the second most populated town with population of about 24,562 in 2018.^[31]
• Rega is the third most populated town with population of about 23,726 in 2018.^[31]
• Ellai is the fourth most populated town with population of about 23,678 in 2018.^[31]
• Afghan Refugees camp had a population of about 22,380 in 2023^{[citation needed]}

• Rustam, Mardan
• Mardan
• Sawawai