Syed Kamran Hashmi

Let us start our discussion with a simple fact: spy agencies cannot reveal the details of their operations to the public. It would be like shooting themselves in the foot if they did, would it not? Their profession demands that they work in the shadows, stay well below the radar of public attention and do […]

While talking to the BBC last week about the North Waziristan operation, General Asim Bajwa, the director general of the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), disclosed that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) had lost the capability of launching coordinated assaults. “Because terrorists have been scattered, they are only able to carry out random attacks,” he boasted. […]

So much has been written and said about the twin sit-ins led by Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and Maulana Tahirul Qadri’s Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT), that it is almost impossible to bring a new perspective into the picture. Whether in favour of or against them, from every angle and every possible outcome, whether it […]

I am not sure what the situation in Islamabad will be by the time these lines appear before you. The speed with which the political scenario changes here can be mindboggling, as if you are driving down the road from the top of a mountain without any brakes losing more control with every twist and […]

Old habits never die. With time, if we do not tame them, they grow so strong that they may end up, by themselves, defining our personalities. Lying is one of those habits (trust me) that do not wither away easily, requiring special efforts and focused personal attention to be subdued.Alas, the chairperson of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf […]

There are numerous ways to commit national suicide. Although financial corruption is the most common, attractive and effective option, it still is chained within its own limitations: it is a sly, insidious and boring process that matures over decades. Unlike an impressive terrorist attack in which a 12-year-old blows himself up along with 50 other […]

Can ignorance still be considered a blessing in this age of technology and information? Hands down, in Pakistan, my answer to this question is a big “yes”. Under ordinary circumstances, information, the close antonym of ignorance, is considered a weapon that, if used with care and caution, can help us to neutralise or subjugate our […]

Democracy has always been an endangered species in Pakistan. Under attack from a group of politicians and helpless against powerful outside forces, it faces a dark future. Why is it that an institution that helps other nations prosper fails in Pakistan? Requiring a lot of patience, it is a slow and grimy process that appears […]

When Will Smith announced the winner of the Oscar award for the best picture of the year on March 2, 2014, it was not at all a big surprise. No doubt, 12 Years A Slave had been a favourite but the question is if the real life events in the life of Solomon Northup, as […]

A prodigious crowd with more than 200,000 people lay before his eyes. Cheering, dancing and singing, they were eager to march towards a better future in Pakistan, a future that would be built upon equality and justice. Most of them were young, but old and middle aged, rich and poor, tall and short, successful professionals […]