PAKISTAN: Military Vs Militancy Does Not Equal Peace

As militant attacks in Pakistan continue unabated, there are increasing calls for the government to rethink its strategy—and look deep within.

PAKISTAN: Vibrant City Loses Colour, Verve amid Escalating Attacks

Lahore, known to the world as "the city of the live-hearted" has been in the grip of extreme fear since Oct. 15, the day when three suicide attacks took place here simultaneously.

PAKISTAN: Polio Vaccination: One Hurdle Down, One More to Go

Until the Taliban were forced to flee by the military, the militant group’s deadly opposition to vaccination had been severely hampering efforts to make Pakistan a polio-free country in the foreseeable future.

AFGHANISTAN: NATO Supporting Insurgents? Not Exactly

The U.S. and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) have spent billions of dollars, sacrificed hundreds of lives and worked for years to fight insurgents and foster democracy in Afghanistan.

POLITICS: U.S. in Pakistan’s Mind: Nothing But Aversion

To the west of Peshawar on the Jamrud Road that leads to the historic Khyber Pass sits the Karkhano Market, a series of shopping plazas whose usual offering of contraband is now supplemented by standard issue U.S. military equipment, including combat fatigues, night vision goggles, body armour and army knives.

Q&A: “We Refuse to Be Held to Ransom By Terrorism”

Karachi-based, Trinidad-born and educated Veena Masud is a school principal who wants to see Pakistani women shine in the international sports arena.

AFGHANISTAN: The Cheap Way to Hell

For the last three weeks, 30-year-old Ghulam Nabi has lain in a Kabul hospital bed, suffering. His face is etched with hopelessness, loneliness and despair over the life he once had and has now lost forever.

PAKISTAN: Students Want Schools to Remain Open Amid Attacks

Tiny Spogmay, a Grade 1 student in one of the biggest schools in the violence-wracked North West Frontier Province (NWFP), is deeply disturbed by the government’s decision to shut down educational institutions all over the country in the wake of renewed terrorist attacks, forcing her to stay home.

AFGHANISTAN: No Refuge For Victims of Violence

The rate of civilian casualties in Afghanistan during 2009 has increased exponentially if compared with previous years.

DEVELOPMENT-SOUTH ASIA: Women’s Peace Offensive

‘Give peace a chance' may just be another cliché for many, but for women who have suffered the ravages of war, endless strife and other forms of conflict, joining hands to find meaningful solutions to their collective aspiration lends it a whole new meaning.

US-PAKISTAN: Obama Signs Controversial Aid Bill

After 10 days of raging controversy centred in Islamabad, U.S. President Barack Obama Thursday signed a major aid bill for Pakistan authorising some 7.5 billion dollars in non-military assistance for the increasingly beleaguered country over the next five years.

RIGHTS-PAKISTAN: There Is Life after the Taliban, But Fears Linger

"Life under the Taliban was like hell. They destroyed our school and the video shop of my father. Now we are again marching towards peace, but fears of the Taliban persist," said 11-year-old Ayesha.

/CORRECTED REPEAT*/POLITICS: Pakistan’s Offensive, Afghanistan’s Risk

For generations, Pakistan's southern Waziristan region has been a launching pad for insurgent military operations in Afghanistan

AFGHANISTAN: Fighting Reinvigorated Taliban Needs Regional Plan

As U.S. military strategists consider whether to send additional troops to Afghanistan, there is little doubt among many Afghans and government officials that the Taliban has resurged with increasing strength and expanded its influence across the country.

PAKISTAN: Repeal of Blasphemy Laws Still a Pipe Dream

It is a never-ending saga.

US-PAKISTAN: Congress Approves Big Increase in Aid

While the foreign policy debate here has focused primarily on Afghanistan and Iran over the past two weeks, official Washington has been moving to tighten ties with a key neighbour of both countries, Pakistan.

PAKISTAN: Local Residents Tacitly Approve of Swat Killings

Widespread reports of extrajudicial killings of suspected Taliban by the military do not seem to have raised alarm bells among a people that have been deeply traumatized by the militant group's atrocities.

AFGHANISTAN: More Civilian Deaths Unless U.S.-NATO Peace Keep

Each month since U.S. President Barack Obama has taken office, Afghanistan has seen a growing number of civilian and military deaths - a spiral of violence which has served to destabilise a nation already struggling to recover from its previous three decades of war.

AFGHANISTAN: Stolen Land and Political Power

Afghanistan's Independent Human Rights Commission says that in the last seven months they have received 12 complaints about stolen land. The complaints cover the map, ranging from Wardak, Panjsher and Kapisa, to Parwan and Kabul.

AFGHANISTAN: Near-Epidemic of Land and Home Theft

Afghans are queuing up Thursday to vote in an election that could give President Hamid Karzai a second term. Still, many among them could be wondering if democracy is working for the majority of people.

HEALTH: Swine Flu's Impact on 7 Billion Dollar Hajj Industry

A swine flu advisory issued by the Saudi government, banning the entry of pilgrims under 12 and over 65 years, is a blow for Hajj pilgrims as Muslims the world over prepare for Ramadan which starts this weekend.