US-IRAN: How Was Rigi Arrested?

New details of the arrest of the Jundullah leader, Abdolmalek Rigi, partly corroborate and partly contradict the initial narrative given by Iranian officials for his arrest.

POLITICS: Jailed Taliban Leader Still a Pakistani Asset

Contrary to initial U.S. suggestions that it signals reduced Pakistani support for the Taliban, the detention of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the operational leader of the Afghan Taliban, represents a shift by Pakistan to more open support for the Taliban in preparation for a peace settlement and U.S. withdrawal.

US-PAKISTAN: Baradar Capture Signals Closer Intelligence Cooperation

The capture of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar last week in a joint operation conducted by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) represents the most important Taliban leader to be taken into custody since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

PAKISTAN: Anger Seethes Over Siddiqi Verdict, Questions Remain

Upon hearing that her daughter Aafia Siddiqi had been found guilty of shooting U.S. officers in Afghanistan in 2008, her mother Ismat distributed sweets in her home neighbourhood in this southern Pakistani city.

PAKISTAN: Police Pay Heavy Toll in Fight Against Terrorism

As the frontline province in Pakistan’s war against terrorism, the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP) has been bearing the brunt of the soaring militancy in the country through massive loss of life and property.

U.S.: Obama Calls for More Development, Counterinsurgency Aid

U.S. President Barack Obama Monday called on Congress to approve major increases over the coming months in global health, development, and counterinsurgency assistance as part of a record 3.8-trillion-dollar 2011 federal budget.

POLITICS: As a Tragic Chapter Ends, Bangladesh Begins Another

Bangladesh has vowed to bring to justice the fugitive killers of the country’s founder president, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, now that five of his assassins have been executed 35 years since his murder.

US-PAKISTAN: FATA Aid Programme Largely a Flop, Audit Says

A 45-million-dollar programme funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) that has been in place for nearly two years in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) has failed to develop local government agencies to ensure delivery of basic services, according to an audit by USAID's inspector general.

PAKISTAN: Home-Based Workers Struggle to Climb Out of Poverty

Razia Khatoon, 36, crouches over a huge wooden frame, her eyes squinting in the dimly lit room inside a squatter settlement in Orangi town in Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city.

Q&A: ‘With More Political Space, Women Can Do More as Peacemakers’

As a political activist and president of the women's wing of the Awami National Party (ANP), Zahira Khattak has been working relentlessly for the empowerment of women in the war-torn North West Frontier Province (NWFP) in Pakistan. She believes that by empowering them, they can contribute more to the peace efforts in the region.

RIGHTS-PAKISTAN: Not Quite a Happy Ending for Freed Fishermen

Tears streaming down his face, Abdul Karim, 40, stepped onto Pakistan soil for the first time in almost two years. He has just been released from prison for the crime of encroaching on India’s waters.

RIGHTS-PAKISTAN: Vestiges of War, Hopes for Peace

"We aren’t going to be browbeaten by acts of cowardice and would continue exposing Taliban and (other) militants," said an angry Shamim Shahid, president of the Peshawar Press Club (PPC).

PAKISTAN: War-Displaced Lament Poor Conditions

Wracked by intense violence in 2009, Pakistan has seen an unprecedented displacement of hundreds of thousands of people, which persists to this day.

PAKISTAN: ‘Eye for an Eye’ Judgment Hailed, Denounced

For Fazeelat Bibi, 21, the last few days of 2009 have brought her some retribution, if not cheer. "Justice has been delivered," said the young woman, her voice void of any feelings.

RIGHTS: Glimmer of Hope for Detained Pakistani Fishermen

Mai Asi has never stopped mourning for her two fishermen sons. They have been held behind bars in India for poaching in the waters of neighbouring Pakistan—a crime for which they were sentenced to two years’ imprisonment.

Q&A: Law and Order May Not Improve in 2010

For women in Pakistan's North Western Frontier Province (NWFP), 2009 has been particularly hard.

CORRUPTION: The Great Afghan Gem Heist

In the last eight years Afghanistan's precious stones and artifacts have been pillaged at record levels. Thieves, both foreign and domestic, often steal the riches from under the noses of officials.

US-PAKISTAN: Civilian Surge Expected in New Aid Plans

U.S. plans to substantially increase non-military aid to Pakistan to help curb Islamist extremism there will initially require a marked rise in the number of U.S.-based experts working in the country, according to a State Department "Strategy Report" released to Congress earlier this week.

AFGHANISTAN: More Questions Than Answers

Last week President Obama made what is probably the most crucial announcement in the past five years of war.

US: Increased Focus and Growing Pressure on Pakistan

While President Barack Obama’s announcement last week that he will "surge" 30,000 more U.S. troops into Afghanistan has received all of the attention here over the past week, Pakistan appears to be looming larger than ever in Washington’s strategic calculations and concerns.

PAKISTAN: Faithful Celebrate Eid Amid Fear, Use Online Services

For Waqas Ahmed, 9, the sight of half a dozen gun-totting policemen—perched on the rooftop of the mosque in his neighbourhood—was very disturbing, to say the least. He had been used to seeing a security guard frisking the faithful during Friday prayers. But what he saw this time on his way to the mosque to say his Eid ul Azha prayers was extraordinary.