Abubakar Siddique, a journalist for RFE/RL's Radio Azadi, specializes in the coverage of Afghanistan and Pakistan. He is the author of The Pashtun Question: The Unresolved Key To The Future Of Pakistan And Afghanistan.
Pakistan's president has officially signed off on a controversial new law establishing Shari'a law in the Swat Valley and neighboring Malakand region, leaving war-weary residents anxiously looking forward to peace. But there are worrying signs that the resurgent Taliban could dash such hopes by seizing on the situation to solidify its control and expand its influence in neighboring areas.
Pakistan recently released 51 Afghans whom authorities found unconscious in a shipping container parked in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta on April 4. Police found another 45 Afghan migrants dead in the same container. The tragic episode reflects the deep crisis of people smuggling in Afghanistan.
Despite public pledges to closely coordinate their efforts in the fight against Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants, Pakistani and U.S. officials seem increasingly at odds on how to move forward in their struggle against extremism. Disagreements resurfaced during a visit this week to Afghanistan and Pakistan by U.S. Admiral Mike Mullen and U.S. regional envoy Richard Holbrooke.
A widely publicized video clip showing the public flogging of a 17-year-old girl in western Pakistan's restive Swat Valley has generated intense controversy in the South Asian Muslim nation. Vocal protests against the incident over the weekend have highlighted growing public anger against the Taliban, who have claimed responsibility for many recent high-profile attacks against security forces and whose reach is now spreading to the Pakistani heartland from the remote tribal regions on the Afghan
It has been six weeks since the government of Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province signed a deal with an influential cleric that raised hopes for peace in return for the implementation of some form of Shari'a law. But while Islamic judges, or qazis, have started working in restive Swat Valley and its surrounding Malakand region, signs are emerging that the actors in the deal have vastly different interpretations and expectations of how the agreement should be implemented.
U.S. President Barack Obama has unveiled a new effort that will target Taliban and Al-Qaeda "safe havens" in South Asia. But he also promised more financial aid, troop deployments, societal development, and regional cooperation to address complex problems in the region.
For Kabul resident Shah Muhammad, 46, it is easy to recall the days when armed factions fought pitched battles in the city streets.
As the Obama administration nears completion of its review of U.S. strategy in Pakistan and Afghanistan, reports suggest that it's considering expanding the scope of covert drone attacks against Taliban elements ensconced outside Afghanistan. On the belief that some Taliban leaders have fled targeted areas and regrouped in Pakistan's southwestern Baluchistan Province, the relatively peaceful region has entered the regional security equation.
The remains of Mohammad Daud Khan, who overthrew Afghanistan's monarchy and became the country's first president in 1973, have been reinterred in a state funeral in Kabul, closing a dark chapter in Afghan history. His assassination in 1978 at the start of a Soviet-backed communist coup ushered a fresh wave of war and violence whose legacy continues to this day.
Pakistan's reinstatement of deposed former Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry has quelled fears of violent antigovernment protests and led to celebrations throughout the country. Many in Pakistan hope the move augers well for a political scene threatened by instability and economic crisis.
With disaffection growing to Pakistan's year-old civilian government, hundreds of thousands opposition activists and lawyers have launched cross-country demonstrations calling for a politically independent judiciary. Their "long march," set to converge on Islamabad next week, is a major challenge to the government of President Asif Ali Zardari.
There are fears that unless the government deals with the entrenched Taliban factions in the Waziristan tribal region, the prospects of peace in both Pakistan and Afghanistan will remain elusive.
U.S. President Barack Obama's proposal to reach out to "moderate" Taliban to help stabilize Afghanistan has been welcomed by many, including the Afghan president. But can those negotiating partners influence their more militant counterparts? And can the distinction between "moderate" and "extremist" Taliban be made at all?
As Pakistan reels from the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in Lahore, its government has already begun trading thinly veiled accusations with India. Critical observers see each side playing the incident to its advantage, with Islamabad portraying the country as a victim of terrorism, as New Delhi strengthens its calls for Pakistan to be reined in.
Hamid Karzai's supporters claim the Afghan president's effort to push for spring elections represented an effort to restore constitutional rule. But the opposition has wondered aloud whether Karzai can be defeated so long as he remains in office and accuse him of trying to steal the vote by leaving lesser-known aspirants with little time to campaign.
A bloody mutiny by Bangladeshi border guards left at least 60 officers dead this week before the South Asian country’s security forces finally put down the revolt. But beyond the initial shock of the violence, the mutiny has also raised concerns about the spread of Islamist militants in the largely secular Muslim country of 150 million people.
In a move that threatens to add to the political instability in Pakistan, the Supreme Court has effectively barred two of the country's most influential politicians from competing in elections or holding public office.
A week after agreeing to a peace deal with a conservative Islamist movement in the restive Swat Valley and the surrounding Malakand region, the provincial government in Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province has announced plans to arm villagers and set up an elite counterterrorism police unit.
Islamists and Pakistani officials have reached an agreement to impose Shari'a law in the Swat Valley and the surrounding Malakand region, in a bid to ease an uprising by militants. But observers have expressed skepticism about whether the agreement can restore peace in the volatile region.
Negotiating with the Taliban will require great caution and discrimination -- but it may also succeed in winning over leaders who would willingly work within the system if they thought it would help their people.
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