PESHAWAR: While Independence Day was celebrated with fervor by IDPs in Bannu, a pocket of protesters in Peshawar on Thursday observed 'black day' demanding repatriation to their homes.

The protesters were carrying black flags and banners demanding that the authorities allow them to return to their homes.

They were of the view that since security forces claimed to have cleared 80 per cent of North Waziristan from militants, their return should be possible.

They also remarked that displaced tribesmen were not celebrating Independence Day as they could not mark the occasion in their villages.