CIA Outlines Pakistan’s Links with Militants

According to a NY Times piece today, “A top Central Intelligence Agency official [identified as Stephen Kappes, the agency's deputy director] traveled secretly to Islamabad this month to confront Pakistan’s most senior officials with new information about ties between the country’s powerful spy service and militants operating in Pakistan’s tribal areas, according to American [...]

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Bush Hails Pakistan as Strong Ally

On Monday, President Bush praised Pakistani PM Yousaf Raza Gilani “for his commitment to their joint battle against extremists.” According to the Associated Press, “Bush and Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani strolled before the assembled media on the South Lawn after a private Oval Office meeting. Appearing upbeat, they sought to publicly ensure their [...]

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The Tug-of-War over the Inter-Services Intelligence

On Saturday, Pakistani media outlets reported that the government placed both the Inter-Service Intelligence (more commonly known as ISI) and the Intelligence Bureau (IB) under the direct control of the country’s interior division. According to Dawn newspaper, “The country’s three main intelligence agencies have been working under various authorities. The ISI and the IB were [...]

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Pakistan’s Female Pop Duo: Zeb and Haniya

A friend passed on a YouTube clip of Pakistan’s rising female pop duo, Zeb & Haniya, or Zeb Bangash and Haniya Aslam. The cousins released their debut album, entitled Chup, on July 19th nationwide. The music video for the song, Aitebar, meaning ‘Trust’ in Urdu, also began airing this past Saturday, [see clip below].
This duo [...]

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Pronouncing Pakistan

It’s a known fact – Americans, for the most part, pronounce Pakistan – PACKistan. As much as I have tried to alter this pronunciation, one American at a time, (following a summer internship in college, for instance, most of Senator Harkin’s office had succumbed to my ‘Pahkistani’ wiles), I often question the source of such [...]

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Al-Qaeda Leader Interviewed on Pakistani Television

On Monday evening, Geo News televised a rare “worldwide exclusive” with senior Al Qaeda leader, Mustafa Abu al-Yazeed, who urged Pakistanis “to help Afghans fight U.S.-led coalition forces and condemned President Pervez Musharraf for arresting Arab and Afghan fighters and handing them over to Washington,” reported the Associated Press. The news agency added that al-Yazeed, [...]

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Journalists and Civil Society Members Protest Extremism

In the past week, civil society members have made several strides against extremism that are worth noting. At a symposium this past Thursday, journalists, editors, and civil society representatives expressed a deep concern with the rising extremism in Pakistan. At the event, hosted by the South Asian Free Media Association (SAFMA), media professionals strongly condemned [...]

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Enraged Investors Turn Violent

On Thursday, media outlets reported that thousands of Pakistani investors, “enraged by the persistent decline in share prices,” protested on the floors of the Lahore, Islamabad, and Karachi, demanding a temporary closure of the markets. According to Dawn, investors at the Karachi Stock Exchange ransacked furniture, “pelting the glass doors and windows of the trading [...]

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Obama Targets Pakistan?

Yesterday, in a speech at the Ronald Regan Trade Building in Washington, D.C., presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama declared that he would shift “the central front in the War on Terror” from Iraq to Afghanistan [see video above]. He said, “Al Qaeda has an expanding base in Pakistan that is [...]

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Pakistan Pushes Back as Outside Pressure Increases

On Monday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai “directly accused Pakistan’s intelligence agency of being behind a recent series of attacks by extremist Islamic militants that have killed scores of people,” reported the AFP. On Sunday, a militant assault on an outpost in Afghanistan killed nine U.S. soldiers, while a suicide attack on the Indian embassy in [...]

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