U.S. Policy Towards Pakistan: What the Obama Administration Should Do – Niloufer Siddiqui

The next U.S. administration will face numerous issues and challenges, and given the security dilemma posed by the militant threat in the FATA, Pakistan will undoubtedly be at the top of that agenda. Below, Niloufer Siddiqui, an M.A. candidate at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, [where she is concentrating in South Asia Studies [...]

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Hundreds of Thousands Gather for Benazir Bhutto’s Death Anniversary

[Image from the AFP]
More than 100,000 grieving Pakistanis gathered at the mausoleum of former PM Benazir Bhutto in honor of her death anniversary today. According to Dawn, “A sea of mourners, some wailing and beating their chests in a wrenching outpouring of emotion, flooded through security checkpoints into the mausoelum in rural southern Garhi Khuda [...]

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Pakistan Cancels Army Leave and Shifts Troops To Indian Border

On Friday, media outlets reported that Pakistan has cancelled leave for “operational” armed forces personnel and redeployed troops to the Indian border amid simmering tensions with New Delhi. According to the AFP, “Both sides have said they do not want war, but warn they would act if provoked.” Although Pakistan’s chief military spokesman Gen. Athar [...]

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Islamabad Marriott Set to Re-Open Sunday

First of all, Merry Christmas to all of our Christian readers out there, and Happy Quaid-e-Azam Day to my fellow Pakistanis, since today is a national holiday  in honor of Mohammed Ali Jinnah’s birthday, [the father of Pakistan]. Sorry that my coverage this week has been a bit sporadic – I’ve been traveling and have [...]

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Miss Pakistan World: Progress for Women’s Rights in Pakistan?

[Image from the NY Times]
By now, many of us have seen or read about Miss Pakistan World Natasha Paracha’s CNN debacle – if you haven’t, you can watch the clip here. Paracha, who is a University of California-Berkeley graduate, caused an internet/media stir when she stated in the CNN interview, “The image of Pakistan has [...]

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Pakistan Protests Airspace Violation, India Cancels Cricket Tour

Media coverage of Pakistan today was dominated by news of the government protesting India’s alleged airspace violation. According to Dawn, “Pakistan has said that Indian air force planes ‘inadvertently’ violated its airspace last week, flying over the Pakistani-administered part of Kashmir and the eastern city of Lahore.” Reuters added in its coverage, “Pakistan said its [...]

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Protests Ensue Over Jamat-ud-Dawa Crackdown

[Image of Hindu Protests from Reuters]
On Wednesday, media outlets reported on various protests occurring in Pakistan in response to the government’s crackdown on the Jamat-ud-Dawa, an Islamic charity organization that many allege is a front group for the Lashkar-e-Toiba, the Kashmiri-based militant group suspected of being behind last month’s Mumbai attacks, [see this recent CHUP [...]

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I am Pakistan

My cousin in Karachi referred me to I am Pakistan – an online movement that is on the verge of becoming an Internet sensation. Initiated by television journalist Faisal Qureshi, the country’s first e-rally urges Pakistanis around the world to take ownership for their actions and stop shifting responsibility. On his Facebook post, Qureshi wrote, [...]

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When All Else Fails…Throw Your Shoe

An Iraqi journalist hurled two shoes at U.S. President George W. Bush during a press conference, an incident that garnered major media attention on Sunday, [see the clip above, and note the cool Austin Powers addition]. In fact, news outlets, including Pakistan’s GEO Television repeatedly played video footage of the “shoe [...]

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Pakistan Cracks Down on Jamat-ud-Dawa

On Thursday, Pakistan moved to ban the Jamat-ud-Dawa, the Islamic charity organization that has been linked to Lashkar-e-Toiba, the militant group that many believe were responsible for November’s attacks in Mumbai. The ban came a day after the United Nations declared it a front for terrorists, and made it “subject to U.N. sanctions including an [...]

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