Islamic State Redux in Afghanistan? on May 20, 2020The recent attacks on minorities in Afghanistan have highlighted the volatile security situation in the country. These incidents send a number of messages to the key stakeholders in Kabul, Islamabad and Washington. First, it indicates how easily one can target a minority group in Afghanistan to create regional and international ripples thus making the impression […]
A Fatal Equilibrium on November 22, 2019The Afghan peace process is currently fractured by lack of equilibrium among key stakeholders. Although we are witnessing that the peace negotiation is continuing in a direct and simple manner on electronic and print media, nonetheless, a complex indirect mechanism is at play between different competing actors for sustainability of peace process. A tenable peace […]
Models of Intelligence Collection on October 31, 2019Over the years, new models of intelligence collection have evolved transforming the information synthesis into different forms with the availability of the latest technology and modern tools. Broadly speaking, these models can be divided into three categories. The first model is purely based on human intelligence interaction, in which human sources, on the ground, intercept […]
Afghan peace prospects 2017 on December 26, 2016Will the New Year bring any solace to the war-torn Afghanistan? Who will play a critical role to ensure peace in the coming year? Will Taliban hold on for another year or buckle down under pressure from the US and its allies in Afghanistan? These questions will depend upon the nature of the insurgency, type […]
Terror of self-radicalisation on July 1, 2016Self-radicalisation is a phenomenon whereby an individual having no or limited physical contact with another individual or a group gets influenced through indirect means to commit violent acts. In other words, when social externalities become strong enough to control human internalities, and push an individual to take extreme steps without giving considerable importance to its […]
Terror of self-radicalisation on July 1, 2016Self-radicalisation is a phenomenon whereby an individual having no or limited physical contact with another individual or a group gets influenced through indirect means to commit violent acts. In other words, when social externalities become strong enough to control human internalities, and push an individual to take extreme steps without giving considerable importance to its […]
Dacoits in the land of Faqir on May 31, 2016Situated on the west bank of the River Indus, Rajanpur was carved out from Dera Ghazi Khan in 1982. It is surrounded by Dera Bugti (Balochistan) in the west, Muzaffargarh (Punjab) in the east and Rahim Yar Khan (Punjab) in the south. District Kashmor (Sindh) also contours along its border in the southern region of […]
A case of violent extremism on December 24, 2015The words radicalism and extremism are often confused with each other. Radicalism is about behaviour and the opinions of people favouring extreme change whereas an extremist is one who acts outside the ambit of social norms. Thus, the term “violent extremism is the use of violence to achieve ideological, religious or political goals on account […]