Abubakar Siddique

Pakistani Coronavirus Cases Rising Despite Spy Service’s ‘Track And Trace’ Efforts

Days after Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said his country is using its intelligence service’s ‘track and trace’ system to combat the coronavirus pandemic, confirmed cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, continue to rise.

How Afghan Women Fare Under Taliban Rule

Based on the current status of women in Taliban-controlled regions, it might mean that women will have token access to employment in essential jobs such health workers or teachers. They will, however, be denied leadership roles and will have to work in strict gender segregation.

Pakistani Opposition Questions Rollback Of Federal Rights

Opposition politicians in Pakistan are against the government’s effort to review a decade-old constitutional amendment that enhanced the country’s federal form of government, restored parliamentary democracy, and made it much more difficult to launch a military coup.

Afghanistan Still Facing Aftershocks Of 1978 Communist Coup

​​On the streets in Kabul, the coup is still blamed for all of Afghanistan’s woes.

Precious Stones Illegally Mined In Afghan Province

Illegal mining of precious stones in an eastern Afghan province is depriving its impoverished residents of resources and their country of much-needed revenue.

In Afghanistan, Lockdown Hits Waziristan Refugees Hard

Family Of IS Victim Struggles To Survive

Nearly five years ago, Rahman Gul, a poor, middle-aged Afghan villager in the eastern province of Nangarhar, became a symbol of the atrocities the ultra-radical Islamic State militants (IS) had begun inflicting on Afghans.

Pakistani Medical Workers Contract Coronavirus Amid Protective Equipment Shortages

Associations of doctors and nurses in Pakistan say that more than 150 healthcare workers in the country have contracted the coronavirus so far due to a lack of the equipment necessary to protect against infection.

Pakistani Prime Minister Faces Turmoil

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan is facing growing chaos within his ruling political party amid pressure and criticism from the country’s powerful military and judiciary over his administration’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Are The Taliban Committed To Negotiating Peace In Afghanistan?

Weeks after the United States and Afghanistan’s Islamist Taliban movement signed an agreement to stipulate the withdrawal of foreign forces in return for counterterrorism guarantees, the hard-line movement has yet to begin talks with the Afghan government as outlined by the pact.

Women Negotiators Seeking To Preserve Rights In Afghan Peace Talks

Women named as part of an Afghan delegation tasked with conducting peace talks with the Taliban say they will be attempting to preserve women’s rights in complex negotiations with the hard-line Islamist movement aimed at ending four decades of war in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan Locks Down Capital To Avoid Coronavirus Tide

Authorities in Afghanistan have announced sweeping measures to shut down the capital, Kabul, which is also the country’s largest city.

Afghanistan Locks Down ‘Gateway’ City Of Coronavirus Outbreak

Authorities in Afghanistan have locked down a western province bordering Iran as the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus infections in the country continues to rise despite fewer people being tested.

Restive Impoverished Pakistani Province Ill-Prepared For Coronavirus

Balochistan bordering Iran and Afghanistan is now ill-prepared to face the coronavirus pandemic that has already killed some 1,000 people in Iran as the country suffers the third-highest infection rates following China and Italy.

Fragile Afghan Peace Process Faces Major Challenges

Two weeks after the United States signed a landmark agreement with Afghanistan’s hard-line Taliban movement, the peace process stipulated by the agreement is already under severe strain because of disagreements over multiple issues mentioned in the agreement and outside its scope.

Veteran Scholar Sees Many Obstacles On The Path To Afghan Peace

Marvin Weinbaum counts disagreements between Afghan elites, the Taliban’s unwillingness to follow through on vague counterterrorism and power-sharing promises, and the possibility of Washington walking away from its longest war as several of the major obstacles to lasting peace in Afghanistan.

U.S.-Taliban Deal Rekindles Old Rivalry Between Afghanistan And Pakistan

Days after the United States signed a historic initial peace deal with the Taliban, an old rivalry between neighbors Afghanistan and Pakistan is rearing its head.

Taliban Present United Front As Opposed To Warring Afghan Gov’t

The imminent peace deal between the United States and Taliban this week is expected to be followed by negotiations between the hard-line Islamist movement and the Western-backed Afghan government.

In Remote Outpost, Afghan Soldiers Celebrate Taliban Truce

Pashtun Tribes Continue Khyber Pass Protest Over Alleged Extrajudicial Killing

Members of Pashtun tribes in northwestern Pakistan’s Khyber district are reluctant to end their protest over the alleged extrajudicial killing of a local young man.