A Janus Faced Alliance
By Saad Hafiz: The heightened rhetoric between Pakistan and the United States has reached a fever pitch after the recent incident which killed twenty-four Pakistani soldiers on the Pak-Afghan border. The relationship already beset by accusations, recriminations and threats since the bin Laden killing seems to have gone into a tailspin in the last few weeks. Pakistan considers the unfortunate border incident as a deliberate act, a part of a ‘plot,’ and very nearly as an act … Read entire article »
Filed under: USA
Feeble excuses
By Saria Benazir The month of december has begun with conspiracies that further taint the already disastrous situation society and politics is in. The future of Pakistan is indeed obscure amidst “patriotic” plots. I cannot repress the history that I have known since my childhood. No child in Pakistan is raised up without having the seeds of pro-Jihadist ideas sowed in his mind. If not family, textbooks provide enough propaganda. These ideas are later malformed into radicalism, we instead term it “Islamisation”, or the pathetic “patriotism”, the definitions of which still elude us. A person, who is not thus “Islamic” or “patriotic” is termed as a “liberal”, the most reviled word in the dictionary. Let us take the memo gate scandal as an example of this moral corruption. On December 1 the Chief Justice of Pakistan began a program … Read entire article »
In Pakistan, drone attack victims pursue criminal charges against US government officials
While the US military continues its campaign in Afghanistan, in neighboring Pakistan, there is continuing opposition to the CIA’s drone strikes. Activists, lawyers and two Pakistani citizens will begin the process of seeking an arrest warrant for former CIA official John Rizzo, who they accuse of overseeing some of the deadly drone strikes. According to the Guardian, the lawyers say the US is violating the laws of war and they want Rizzo and possibly others involved in the drone strikes charged with murder. For more on this and the implications of the visit this weekend of Pakistan’s spy chief to Washington, we spoke to Raza Rumi in Lahore, editor of the Pak Tea House website.Click here to listen audio and read complete article … Read entire article »
On Nationality
By Kiran Rizvi “Where do you come from?” people often ask me in the US. It makes for an excellent question to break the ice in a meeting or at a party, or maybe they are curious to find out my roots so they can pass an ‘educated’ judgment on my demeanor. Even people from Pakistan and India ask me the same question; I guess they want to know which part of the subcontinent I belong to. It has always been hard for me to answer this question. The idea of nationality intrigues me; what makes a geographical area on earth, one’s ‘homeland’? My mother often talks to me about the small village in India where she was born. She often recounts her trip to the village orchard where she used to … Read entire article »
Filed under: People's Pakistan, USA
The recent demise of American Physician Dr Jack Kervorkian
By the Satarist: The recent demise of American pathologist Dr Jack Kervorkian, otherwise known as ‘Dr Death’ for his strident advocacy of physician assisted suicide, has once again reignited the fiery debate about euthanasia. Surprisingly, Dr Kervorkian’s beliefs have found a peculiar ally in the form of Islamic extremist groups in Pakistan. Amidst slogans of ‘death to America by Alzheimer sufferers’ a rally was held in the Pakistani capital Islamabad yesterday by the Kastori Boti Taliban calling … Read entire article »
President Obama’s Road Map To Re Election
By: D. Asghar President Obama laid out his plans for troop draw down from Afghanistan. At least he is cognizant of the fact that 2012 re election bid is approaching soon. He will be on the campaign trail soon, behind the podiums, talking to a whole lot of Americans and the rest of the world. It is no surprise, that his approval ratings took a plunge again, right after the OBL episode. The fact remains that generally people are a bit disappointed with the first term. The troop withdrawal was one of his 2008 campaign items and it is wise of him to follow through. The Obama administration can definitely take credit for OBL elimination and some other stalwarts of the Jihadi side, in and around Pakistan. It is true that, Pakistan … Read entire article »
Filed under: Afghanistan, Pakistan, USA
Saving a rocky relationship
By Raza Rumi: The killing of Osama bin Laden is another hurdle to tackle, and we are in a critical moment of another reevaluation of the Pakistan-US relations, just a few months after the close of the Raymond Davis saga. Pakistan-US relations are subject to global scrutiny and elude a definitive assessment due to the nature of a partnership scarred by history, competing interests and unflattering public opinion. Recent surveys such as the BBC World Service Poll … Read entire article »
2011-05-31 More from Raza Rumi on the Pakistan Papers – US Operations Constrained by India-Pakistan Relations
My interview which has appeared on Wikileaks Central. The Dawn Media Group in partnership with WikiLeaks has been releasing the “Pakistan Papers.” Thus far, some of the revelations include the following: US was concerned that Pakistan would oppose its policies at the United Nations; US was worried Pakistan would purchase oil from Iran, allowing them to get a foothold in Pakistan; Pakistan’s government was upset with US funding for the Pakistan military, which led to increased civil-military … Read entire article »
On the Issue of the United States, Pakistan Is Playing with Fire
By Kevin Gosztola: The Dawn Media Group in partnership with WikiLeaks has been releasing the “Pakistan Papers,” cables from the trove of more than 250,000 US State Embassy cables that WikiLeaks obtained which specifically deal with Pakistan. Thus far, some of the revelations include the following: Pakistan’s military asked for continued drone coverage, the US has had troops deployed on Pakistan soil, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been financing jihadist groups in Pakistan and the … Read entire article »
Is America really our Enemy No 1?
By Raza Rumi : Six months ago, an extraordinary news report was published by Dawn, which recounted the contents of a military briefing given to journalists on November 30, 2010. A top Pakistani military official stated that Pakistan “has transited from the ‘most sanctioned ally’ to the ‘most bullied ally’” of the US. Essentially an off-the-record briefing, the contents were leaked to the public wherein the army leadership declared that the US had a “transactional” relationship with … Read entire article »
Understanding Pakistani Mistrust of the United States
By Raza Habib Raja This was orginally published at Huffington Post Over the years, U.S. bashing has become a national pastime in Pakistan. This trend is dominant almost everywhere, ranging from drawing room discussions to media talk shows, and in recent months has assumed alarming proportions due to host of events such as Afia Siddique verdict, Raymond Davis’s capture and subsequent release, incessant drone attacks and above all, the recent killing of Osama bin Laden. Although it would be an exaggeration to say that everyone in Pakistan mistrusts and hates the U.S., a substantial majority does. Several surveys have revealed that majority of Pakistanis consider USA as an enemy rather than a friend. In fact Al-Jazeera-Gallup Pakistan Survey 2009 revealed that 59% identified the U.S. as the greatest threat to Pakistan. Even India, … Read entire article »
Abbotabad Operation and our chance to redeem ourselves
By Yasser Latif Hamdani The Abbotabad Operation and the accompanying humiliation has given Pakistan another opportunity to redeem itself. … Read entire article »
The trajectory of peace
By Raza Rumi The dramatic events of the past few days have far-reaching repercussions on the future of global terrorism and US policy in Afghanistan and West Asia. Osama bin Laden may have been removed from the scene, but Al Qaeda lives as a hybrid conglomerate with formidable allies in Pakistan and elsewhere. Whilst a plethora of questions on Bin Laden’s capture and death remains unanswered, Pakistan has, once again, come under global scrutiny admittedly for the right reasons. Most Pakistanis are dumbfounded by the sudden discovery of Bin Laden virtually under the nose of the military and the mysterious way in which Operation Geronimo was carried out by the United States. Despite the hard talk, it is clear that the US-Pakistan relationship is not going to be majorly affected by the recent turn of … Read entire article »
Complicity or Incompetence: Which way the Wind is Blowing Now
By Raza Habib Raja .Ever since killing of Osama Bin Laden, the subsequent analysis has largely been dominated by the following question: Was Pakistani Intelligence apparatus guilty of complicity or incompetence? Now this question has so far been intensely debated in the Media, Western and Local, and various journalists, anchors and analysts have come up with their theories and “verdicts”. However much more interesting are policy and “informal” statements given by the US officials. Immediately after the death of Osama Bin Laden and till the time these sentences are being written, the “art” of diplomacy characterized by giving seemingly conflicting and confusing statements has been in full swing. It is hardly surprising as diplomacy has seldom been an art of “clarity” as it is a tool for ensuring realpolitik concerns … Read entire article »
Behind the Hunt for Bin Laden
By MARK MAZZETTI, HELENE COOPER and PETER BAKER Pete Souza/The White House President Obama and members of his national security team receiving an update on Sunday. A classified document in front of Hillary Rodham Clinton was blurred before this photo was released. More Photos » WASHINGTON — For years, the agonizing search for Osama bin Laden kept coming up empty. Then last July, Pakistanis working for the Central Intelligence Agency drove up behind a white Suzuki navigating the bustling streets near … Read entire article »
PTH biweekly Cartoon
Picture of the Week
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Sunrise at the Arabian Sea, Charna Island
24 Dec 2011
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