The latest series of attacks in Afghanistan makes predicting the progress in the stabilization of the country a difficult call. The failure by the Taliban to disrupt the presidential elections on October 9 led to prognoses from both the Afghan government and the U.S. military... MORE

"Just because you're paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't out to get you" was a popular American political catchphrase at the time of the Watergate scandal of thirty years ago. It has new applicability to the consideration of the terrorist threat in Central Asia. In... MORE

An Interview with Sadykzhan Kamuluddin by Igor Rotar Sadykzhan Kamuluddin (Kamalov), president of the Islamic Center of the Republic of Kyrgyzstan and former Mufti and member of the Kyrgyzstans Supreme Council, is one of the most influential religious leaders in Central Asia. Uzbek by descent,... MORE

Hezb-e-Islami Afghanistan (The Islamic Party of Afghanistan or HIA), which once ranked as the most powerful resistance party in the country, is increasingly sidelined and under pressure from various quarters, including coalition forces and the new Afghan government. Moreover, HIA is having to contend with... MORE

Without doubt, Hizb ut-Tahrir (Liberation Party) is one of the most powerful organizations operating in Central Asia. Hizb ut-Tahrir (HuT) is banned in nearly all Central Asian republics, but despite repressive measures undertaken against the party by the governments of Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan,... MORE

The Uzbek regime of Islam Karimov held parliamentary elections in December, simultaneously with the contested second round of voting in Ukraine. As a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States, the Tashkent government is openly anxious about the possibility of rapid and extensive democratic reform... MORE

From the number of reports of activity recorded by the pro-Western press and the statements put out on the Emirate of Afghanistan's own Shafaq Information Center bulletins, the New Year has been an active time for the insurgency. But overall the portents are not good... MORE

In early February, the emir of the Taliban in South Waziristan reached a peace deal with the central authorities in Islamabad. Baitullah Mehsud promised not to shelter or support foreign militants nor attack government installations and forces. If the agreement holds, it will help pacify... MORE

The recent constitutional Loya Jirga (CLJ) in Kabul, which ratified the new constitution for Afghanistan and set the stage for presidential and parliamentary elections later this year, was successfully carried out without interference from the armed opposition. The event, held under strict security, was not... MORE

Over the past three years, the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU)--a group on the U.S. Department of State's list of international terrorist organizations--has kept a very low profile. Twice, in the summers of 1999 and 2000, IMU militants attempted to overthrow the secular regime in... MORE