Standing at the roadside in Hasan Abdal, a town 50km from Islamabad, Amina Jan recalled an ordeal that began on Tuesday when officials in the Swat valley, Pakistan, relaxed a curfew and urged local people to leave quickly in anticipation of a military offensive.

Ms Jan, 35, wiped away tears and told of her escape from Swat with her four children as the military stepped up its efforts this week to block the most formidable Taliban advance in Pakistan’s history.