Saad Hafiz

The scale of the devastation from the decade-old civil war in Syria shows that a viable and functioning state isn’t on the horizon soon. Syria needs billions of dollars for humanitarian aid to the injured, the permanently disabled and internal refugees and to rebuild the country once the violence stops. Neighbouring Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, and […]

The tussle between religion and modernity hasn’t been confined to Islam. Western civilization also experienced a similar tug-of-war. The West chose the path of evolutionary secularism. It made room for the assertive secularism sans religion dominant in France and the passive secularism more accepting of religion in the United States. But the West generally downgraded […]

Faith-based conflicts have largely shifted from Europe to the Middle East and South Asia. These regions can learn from the European experience. We know that religion and politics are a deadly mix and that religious nationalism can complicate matters. The Israeli-Palestinian dispute, the Iran-Iraq war, the conflicts in Iraq and Syria, Saudi Arabia and Iran, […]

In retrospect, the creation of Pakistan in 1947 with two territories a thousand miles apart, could be viewed as a recipe for discord, if not disaster. That the flawed arrangement lasted as long as it did is a miracle in itself. But we must not forget that Bengali Muslims largely supported the creation of Pakistan […]

The Indian Supreme Court has rendered its final verdict in the long-standing Babri Masjid dispute in Ayodhya. In a unanimous decision, the court allowed the construction of a temple on the site despite ruling the earlier demolition of the mosque illegal. As compensation, the court gave Muslims an alternate piece of land to build a […]

Since 9/11, radical Islamic terrorism has made inflammatory headlines across the world. Terrorist atrocities have heightened hostility towards Islam and Muslims. In the wake of vicious terrorist attacks in the United States and Europe, one can understand the harsh reactions of political and military leaders. Politicians and pundits in the West and jihadists have something […]

Bloodletting has blighted Afghanistan throughout its tortured history. Possibly the worse outcome to the Afghan problem is more violence by the parties involved. Most rulers killed, maimed, or tortured opponents on the way to power and to force elusive modernity. The people, tied by tradition and religion, had to deal with harsh punishments, executions, and […]

India’s long history and rich traditions of an inclusive society are under threat. It has long been the conventional wisdom that the country’s diversity would prevent the creation of a Hindu-first nation. Still, it seems increasingly likely that the narrative of India as a Hindu democratic state will prevail. There is a danger that India’s […]

All those who desire peace in South Asia should be deeply worried about the rapidly deteriorating relations between India and Pakistan. Over the past two decades, mutual hostility has completely sabotaged any chance of peace between Indians and Pakistanis and sowed the seeds of a devastating conflict. A nuclear war between India and Pakistan is […]