Unseen horrors
WHEN yet another Sudanese civil war erupted in April 2023, the then year-old Russian invasion of Ukraine continued to hog the attention of the so-called international community. Now, as Israel…
Pakistan and the World Cup
PAKISTAN’S contributions to the Qatar World Cup reveal a juxtaposition. On the one hand, the country’s institutions have failed to adequately develop its talent pool — footballing and otherwise. The…
Why we should care
PAKISTAN’S official position on the Palestinian struggle has been relatively consistent since 1948. Despite occasional recent murmurs about a softening towards Israel, no actual step was taken. Part of this…
TTP’s mentors
WITH the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan back in the killing business with renewed ferocity, it is time we took a look at its ideological moorings. In a nutshell, like the communist parties…
Why Pakistan fails in space
THANKS to a legion of excellent scientists and engineers trained in Indian universities, India is shooting for the stars. Here ‘stars’ is a metaphor for much else: astrophysics, computers, chemical…
Our quiet desperation
DURING a recent conversation, a fellow journalist and friend expressed regret that he wasn’t trained in air-conditioning repair. And before I could even ask why, he explained that heating and…
Have faith in facts
I SUSPECT many will agree about the benefits of a digital detox, ie a break from the constant stream of information on mobile devices. I enjoyed my break last week…
Godspeed Afghans
THERE is no getting away from them. Love them, do not love them, cannot ignore them? From the attacks across the Khyber Pass by the marauders of yore, to Bacha…
Listening to GB
Local protesters have been peacefully demonstrating in Skardu for two weeks, under the shadow of the fluttering green-and-white Pakistani flag. All profess to be Pakistanis, and have Pakistani passports and…
Greener pastures
A few weeks ago, a news report gave the figure of Pakistanis migrating abroad in 2022 for work-related purposes as 765,000. The bulk of these were in blue-collar occupations, but…
