Manish Rai

With the recent killing of Al-Qaeda (AQ) chief Ayman al-Zawahri in the Afghan capital, Kabul, a lot of speculation is happening about the future of this terror outfit. Some analysts are even going to the extent of suggesting that Al-Qaeda is nearing its end. But certainly, that is highly unlikely. The group survived its ideological […]

The ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) has taken effect in the Gaza Strip after days of cross-border fighting triggered by surprise Israeli airstrikes. The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said its aerial bombardment was a pre-emptive action aimed at preventing rocket attacks planned by PIJ against Israeli targets. In retaliation for airstrikes, […]

Recently India has reinvented its engagement policy with the Taliban. In the first week of June, a high-level Indian diplomatic delegation led by J P Singh, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs held a meeting with the Taliban’s acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in the Afghan capital. This was the first-ever official […]

The Taliban have firm control over Afghanistan. At this point in time, there are no opponents capable of undermining their positions in terms of military, political, or even economic resources. Also, there have been no meaningful changes in the radical ideology of the Taliban. It is still a militant group ruling over a UN member […]

In 2018, Pakistan witnessed the rise of a new celebrity Prime Minister, Imran Khan who vowed to halt dynastic politics, end corruption and boost the economy. Common Pakistanis, especially the youth, saw Khan as their only ray of hope. As before coming to power, Khan, in his speeches, pledged to root out corruption and lift […]

Balochistan Pakistan’s largest province in terms of area in the last few weeks has witnessed a drastic increase in attacks against the Pakistani security forces, with Baloch rebels having caused heavy casualties to the state forces in different operations. Baloch insurgents are usually involved in scattered target killings, small ambush, and roadside bombings. Now we’re […]

Last month, Turkey made it into the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog headquartered in Paris. Turkey now joins its close ally Pakistan in FATF’s crosshairs. Surprisingly, Turkey becomes the largest economy to be included in this list. The FATF listing for Ankara comes […]

Attacks carried out by Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) aka Pakistani Taliban have increased to the highest level in over four years after the US left Afghanistan and the Afghan Taliban took power. The TTP has been emboldened by the developments in next-door Afghanistan. This has complicated the internal security scenario for Pakistan as the country is […]

The Taliban’s announced 33-member interim cabinet is exclusively Taliban, and almost all ministers are of Pashtun ethnicity. Women have no positions in this new setup. The Ministry of Women’s Affairs has been dissolved. And the sinister Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has been re-established. This clearly illustrates that the […]

The Taliban now control almost the whole of Afghanistan including the capital city, Kabul, almost two decades after they were driven out by US troops. It was widely expected that after the United States’ complete withdrawal the Taliban will make significant territorial gains. But no one expected that it will happen at that fast pace […]