The latest UNSC monitoring team report has reignited an old but unresolved debate: is Afghanistan once again becoming a safe space for militant groups, and what does that mean for Pakistan and the wider region? The report challenges the Afghan Taliban’s claim that no terrorist organisations operate from Afghan soil. It states that groups such […]
The analysis scene in Pakistan over situation in Balochistan, especially the former Kalat State, is in overdrive. Most analysts lament the policy adopted by Pakistan over decades in dealing with Baloch ‘grievances’ and ‘sense of deprivation’, blaming this or that civil or military government. Some are crying hoarse that the issue has ‘political solution’ only, […]
Pakistan’s economic engine is being choked by organised crime, with top cops and even wealthy businessmen now freely admitting who runs the show. The Karachi police chief told journalists the other day that members of his own department are involved with organised crime, while also pointing fingers at bureaucrats, politicians and members of the media, […]
We should be judged by what we have done to our heroes. On the one hand, we have erased from our collective memory the contributions of a vast gallery of towering figures from this region. On the other, even those whom we do hail as national heroes are rarely accepted in their totality; instead, we […]
At a time when households are already squeezed by inflation, the proposal to impose new fixed monthly electricity charges on residential consumers — including the poorest — reflects a troubling shift in policy priorities. Nepra is considering fixed charges ranging from Rs200 to Rs675. On paper, the slabs appear modest. But they mark a structural change in […]