Aside from Afghanistan and Iraq, the U.S. led war on terrorism has affected the geopolitical fortunes of Iran and Pakistan more than any other country in West Asia and the Middle East. While on the surface it seems that Pakistan sustained a geo-strategic setback with... MORE

Living in Karachi today, it is difficult to believe that the nightlife in this port metropolis during the 1960s was livelier than that of Beirut, Bombay or Baghdad. Top Lebanese, Egyptian and even blond European artists were employed in Karachi hotels to perform cabaret dances.... MORE

Traveling on the luxury, air-conditioned Express Bus from Islamabad to Peshawar is a defining experience that suddenly confronts Pakistan's historical secularism with a new-found Islamic fundamentalism. When the bus reaches the border between the province of the Punjab and the North West Frontier Province (NWFP,... MORE

The Iraqi insurgency spiked again in August 2004 when Muqtada al-Sadr took the offensive against the transitional Iraqi government of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and the Multi-National Force of U.S. and other foreign troops, as the former coalition is now known. It was optimistically believed... MORE

In the midst of growing political tensions between Iran and the United States a Shi'ite rebellion in the remote mountains of northwest Yemen has created suspicions that Iran may be attempting to open a new anti-American front to weaken U.S. efforts in the region. Yemen's... MORE

The July 30 attacks on the Prosecutor General's Office, the U.S. Embassy, and the Israeli Embassy in Tashkent demonstrate the continued terrorist presence in the republic of Uzbekistan. These forces appear to be directing their efforts not only against the regime of Islam Karimov, but... MORE

New bombings at the gates of the U.S. and Israeli embassies in Tashkent on July 30, and an apparently-aborted political trial in the capital of Uzbekistan, have drawn renewed attention to the specter of Islamist extremism in Central Asia. Three Uzbek citizens were killed in... MORE

As the violent attacks in Iraq have multiplied, it is becoming evident that the moniker "al-Qaeda" has been unwisely overused, adding to the potentially dangerous misrepresentation that the U.S. and its allies are facing a monolithic and unitary foe responsible for all Islamist violence on... MORE

At a period of uncertainty and fragmentation for the Salafist movement in Algeria, a new publication has made its appearance on the internet. In May, the first issue of Al-Jama'a (The Group) was posted on the website of the Groupe Salafiste pour la Prédication et... MORE

In the aftermath of the Iraq war, Syria captured the headlines of the world press, as the international community asked, "Will Syria be next?" Though it quickly became clear that no such attack was imminent, Syria, nevertheless, has come under intense American pressure aimed at... MORE