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// Since September there have been 19 missile attacks on suspected terrorists by the US, most of them in Waziristan. They have led to the deaths of some foreign fighters; at the same time they have killed numerous innocent persons. As a result there is a widening wave of revulsion against US policies and Pakistan'sRead More »Need for review of US anti-terror policy in Pakistan

FATA and the NWFP are in the midst of "interesting times." According to the Chinese such periods are unstable and bring a whirlpool of difficulties. Pakistan has entered a sinkhole of problems and will need adroit handling to prevent a further slide. When Pakistan joined the war on terrorism in 2001 it conceived an impracticalRead More »Hope and fear in NWFP

// Since April of this year the military changed the method of fighting the insurgency in FATA and the NWFP. Prior to 'Operation Zalzala,' which was conducted in the Mahsud area of South Waziristan from January to April, the military strategy was guided by a minimalist response. However, this led to poor results with decliningRead More »Talking peace with militants

// The US has publically endorsed the Saudi-British initiative for holding peace talks with the Afghan Taliban. The US has also for the first time officially declared that the Afghan problem needs to be resolved politically, through reconciliation. On Oct 9 US defence secretary Robert Gates said the US will be prepared for pursuing reconciliationRead More »America’s exit strategy in Afghanistan

// Pakistani media is replete with discussion about the war in the tribal areas and the response of the militants in the form of suicide bombings and armed confrontation as in Bajaur, Darra, Hangu and Swat or the Marriott bombing in Islamabad. It is being said that the war Pakistan is fighting is actually America'sRead More »Is it our war or not?

// The suicide attack on the Marriot has brought into question Pakistan's participation in the war on terrorism. In a sense the attack was the consequence of flawed policies which permitted our territories to be used as a place of refuge by the multi  national militants who fled Afghanistan after the US attacked and destroyedRead More »Significance of the Marriot bombing

The suicide attack on the Marriott has brought into question Pakistan's participation in the war on terrorism. In a sense the attack was the consequence of the flawed policies which permitted our territories to be used as a place of refuge by the multinational militants who fled Afghanistan after the US attacked and destroyed theRead More »Significance of the Marriott bombing

// The recent US ground and air attacks on Waziristan have forced the Pakistani military to condemn these unilateral actions. The Prime Minister was more taciturn and called these attacks a violation of sovereignty. He cautioned that since the US is an ally of Pakistan, matters ought to be resolved peacefully. Since the last coupleRead More »Pakistan’s dilemma in FATA

// The two recent ISAF-US led attacks on South Waziristan have generated anger against the US. It is tragic that in these attacks innocent Pakistani women and children were killed. The depth of Pakistan's annoyance and hurt was evident when the US ambassador to Pakistan was summoned to the Foreign Office and a protest lodged.Read More »The future of the Pakistan-US friendship

// This asymmetric war is being waged at different levels in FATA and NWFP. Unlike a conventional war where success and failure is measured in term of enemy area captured, the success or failure here is measured in term of the number of people supporting the militants or the government. This war is thus notRead More »Winning Hearts and Minds