What Is Sadr’s Game on Future U.S. Troop Presence?

The big question looming over U.S.-Iraqi negotiations on a U.S. military presence after 2011 is what game Shi'a leader Moqtada al-Sadr is playing on the issue.

Outrage as Terror Revisits India’s Financial Capital

Hastimal Sen mistook the deafening sounds of explosions that shook his office in Mumbai’s crowded Zaveri Bazaar Wednesday evening as cars backfiring.

PAKISTAN: Soldiers Pay a Price in War on Terrorism

Army soldier Zaheer Abbas and his squad were hunting down militants in the outskirts of Darra Adamkhel, a town in northwest Pakistan famous for its weapons workshops, when they suddenly found themselves under a surprise volley of improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Deadly Blasts Rock Mumbai

At least 17 people have been killed and scores wounded after three blasts struck India's financial capital of Mumbai, police have said.

PAKISTAN: Religious Scholars Called In to Promote Peace

The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in northwestern Pakistan is calling on religious scholars to help end the violence in the militancy-wracked province, in a desperate attempt to restore peace.

US-IRAN: Tensions Mount Over Iraq, Nuke Sanctions

Reviving U.S.-Iran friction over Iraq may have more to do with deteriorating relations over Iran's nuclear programme than with uncertainty over U.S. troop levels in Iraq beyond the end of this year.

US: Calls Mount to Investigate Bush Era Officials for Torture

Senior officials under the former George W. Bush administration knowingly authorised the torture of terrorism suspects held under United States custody, a Human Right Watch (HRW) report released here Tuesday revealed.

US-PAKISTAN: Military Aid Hold Deals New Shocks

By suspending 800 million dollars in U.S. military aid to Pakistan, the administration of President Barack Obama appears to be taking a calculated gamble that Islamabad – and especially its powerful army – has no interest in substantially escalating the growing crisis in bilateral relations.

Dissident Resurgence Seen in Northern Ireland

It was a tragedy on Mother's Day for Nuala Kerr. Her son Ronan had been a police constable for three months when he was murdered by dissident republicans in April.

PAKISTAN: War Breeds Child Workers

He should be inside a classroom but instead Jawad Ali spends his days selling sandals on the sidewalks of Khyber Bazaar in the city of Peshawar in northwest Pakistan. "I want to be in school, but it’s not possible now," said 11-year-old Ali.

Despite Troop Surge, Taliban Attacks and U.S. Casualties Soared

Data on attacks by armed opposition forces and U.S. combat casualties since the U.S. troop surge in Afghanistan was completed last summer provide clear evidence that the surge and the increase in targeted killings by Special Operations Forces have failed to break the momentum of the Taliban.

U.S.: The Realist Who Moved Washington Closer to Reality

"We are in a multi-polar world now," Robert Gates told a Washington Post columnist within a year of his taking over the Pentagon in early 2007.

Taliban Fighters Attack Landmark Kabul Hotel

An overnight assault by Taliban gunmen and suicide bombers on a major hotel in Kabul has ended with the killing of the attackers by security forces and the deaths of up to 10 other people, according to officials.

PAKISTAN: Schools Rise From the Rubble

Violence in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan has kept students away from school, in some areas for at least two years. Now, officials are trying to make up for lost time by holding classes even under tents or trees.

Real Estate Boom as Displaced Pakistanis Seek Housing

Real estate prices have shot up in areas adjacent to the tribal districts of northwest Pakistan where violence continues to displace local residents.

NIGERIA: Islamic Sect’s Siege on Nation Borne Out of Frustration

The sectarian crisis and recent violence by extremist groups, like the Jun. 16 bomb blast on the Nigerian Police Headquarters, are borne out of anger at prevailing economic conditions rather than religion, analysts say.

Obama Leaves Door Open to Long-Term U.S. Afghan Combat

President Barack Obama's speech announcing that the 33,000 "surge" troops in Afghanistan will be withdrawn by "summer" 2012 indicates that he has given priority to the interests of the military and the Pentagon over concerns by key officials in his administration over the impact of the war's costs on domestic socioeconomic needs.

PAKISTAN: ‘Ethnic Cleansing’ Feared in Balochistan

The pain and anger in 25-year-old Rukhsana Langho’s voice could be heard over the telephone line from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, 700 kms north of the port city of Karachi. "We hate Pakistan and we want freedom," she says, bitter over the disappearance of her brother more than a year ago.

Pew Survey Reaffirms Pakistanis Hostility Toward the U.S.

The Pakistani public’s perceptions of the United States have hit their lowest levels since the 2002 invasion of Afghanistan, according to a new survey released here Tuesday by the Pew Global Attitudes Project (GAP).

BOOKS-PAKISTAN: Between a Rock and a Hard Country

It is almost obligatory these days to subtitle books on Pakistan with some conjunction of 'failed', 'dangerous', 'lawless', 'deadly', 'frightening' or 'tumultuous'. Pakistan is a 'tinderbox', forever on the brink, in the eye of the storm, or descending into chaos. It is an 'Insh'allah nation' where people passively wait for Allah.

Al-Zawahiri Named New Al-Qaeda Chief

Al-Qaeda has named Ayman al-Zawahiri as its new chief following the killing of Osama bin Laden, the group has said in a statement issued in the name of the group's general command.