Though the concept of Afghan and Western reconciliation with the Mullah Mohammad Omar-led Taliban has gained much momentum, the consequences of some kind of ad hoc settlement between the Islamists and the government of President Hamid Karzai have not been clearly defined. Opposition is growing... MORE

Maulvi Muhammad Qalamuddin, the former chief of Amr-e-Bil M’arouf wa Nahi Anil Munkar (the General Department for the Preservation of Virtue and the Elimination of Vice) in the government of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan which ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996-2001, has been chosen as... MORE

On May 31, a group of Afghan cattle raiders stole some 80 cows from a farm in Shurobod district, on Tajikistan’s southern border with Afghanistan. Under the cover of the night, the armed raiders drove the cows across the Panj River, which separates the two... MORE

Armenia has decided to almost triple the number of its troops stationed in Afghanistan as part of the U.S.-led multinational mission operating there under NATO’s aegis. The decision is a further indication that the South Caucasus state is continuing to seek closer security ties with... MORE

Next month, Afghanistan may gain observer status in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The organization considers this to be an appropriate step forward given that the Afghan people “gradually take over the responsibility for all key areas of life in the country, including ensuring the... MORE

As the date for the drawdown of NATO troops in Afghanistan nears, some Pakistani ex-servicemen and cricket hero turned politician Imran Khan are working on a two-pronged plan to prevent the movement of logistical supplies for NATO troops in Afghanistan through Pakistan. On the one... MORE

Early Life and Education Maulana Fazlur Rehman was born into a religious family in 1953 in Dera Ismail Khan, one of the more underdeveloped areas in Pakistan. His ancestors came from Kandahar. Due to the severe and harsh winters in Kandahar, they would migrate to... MORE

The Lashkar-e-Islam (LeI), a Mangal Bagh-led militant organization based in the Khyber Tribal Agency, is facing a serious threat to its existence after recent clashes with an LeI splinter group comprised of Zakakhel tribesmen. Efforts by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) to forge a peace deal... MORE

As Central Asia opened up to the rest of the world after the collapse of the Soviet Union opportunities have emerged for the regional countries to build links with Europe, South-East Asia, and the Middle East. This has proved to be significant in the development... MORE

Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, and Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, received the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, on January 21-23 for an official visit. It was the first Russian-Afghan presidential-level meeting since a freshly installed Karzai had met the then President Putin in 2002. Russia is now... MORE