Welcome back
Anyone who is witness to the Swat Taliban’s rise must have been stunned to watch Sufi Muhammad walk free out of prison and straight onto TV screens, speaking like a…
Hitting the wrong target
The progress on Operation Raddul Fasaad is being reported as satisfactory. Press briefings by law-enforcement agencies create the impression that terrorists are on the run and security forces are killing…
Water diplomacy
Over the last 53 years, there have been around 40 water-related disputes worldwide that have resulted in acts of violence and more than 150 treaties have been signed to resolve…
Bait-and-switch?
Pakistan renewed push to fence its terrorism-plagued border with Afghanistan, which does not recognise it as a formal frontier, tends to rake up an old controversy. The nostrum could end…
Beyond border fencing
The concept of fencing international borders has gained popularity over the past few years due to their enormous projection and the changing socio-economic and socio-political landscape of the global political…
Dealing with the Afghans
Our shut-open-shut border policy towards Afghanistan needs a serious review. More than a review, it needs context, aim-identification and proper juxtaposition within our long-term strategic worldview. We ought to have…
An urban combat
Operation Raddul Fasaad, as a final showdown, has brought the war against militants to the centres of the urban population. The campaign has been launched following the cleansing of the…
Mapping religious groups
Extremism and terrorism pose an existential threat to the peace, progress and prosperity of the country. Unfortunately, we have failed to eradicate terrorism despite the fact that we have spent…
Mainstreaming or cornering Fata?
Fata, known for its elusive terrain and fabled tribesmen, has been turned into an untenable area purportedly to eliminate terrorists’ cubby holes. The success of Operation Zarb-e-Azb, launched in 2014,…
Integrating Fata: the how and why
According to news reports, the federal government has decided to gradually merge the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) in the next five years. The initial duration…
