Latest Articles about South Asia
Bin Laden Seizes Opportunities in his June and July Speeches
Osama bin Laden's speeches on June 30 and July 1 are notable because they portray his confidence and focus, command of the al-Qaeda organization and steady application of a strategy that seeks to prompt U.S. actions that spread U.S. military and intelligence forces in a... MORE
Baitullah Mehsud: South Waziristan’s Unofficial Amir
Militancy in Pakistan's tribal areas gave birth to a new generation of leadership. Most of the traditional tribal elders who constitute the jirga system have been killed at the hands of the local Taliban; those who survived this assassination strategy fled to safer locations in... MORE
Violence and Rebellion in Iranian Balochistan
The escalating insurgency in Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan and neighboring regions receives extensive media coverage. Aside from the need to root out radical Islamist opposition movements tied to al-Qaeda and the Taliban, Pakistan faces a series of domestic threats based on ethnic, sectarian and... MORE
Pakistan Launches New Offensive in Balochistan
Since the forcible annexation of the Baloch Khanate of Kalat by Pakistan in 1947, the Balochistan region has seen a succession of revolts against political centralization and resource exploitation. Balochistan is Pakistan's largest province, but is sparsely populated with only six million people. A low-level... MORE
Insurgents Switch Tactics in Waziristan
After two years of confronting a low level insurgency, North Waziristan is now suffering from lethal suicide attacks directed at government security forces. The use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) is also becoming common, especially in South Waziristan. IED usage has caused government forces in... MORE
The Talibanization of the North-West Frontier
In a bid to cope with the worsening security situation in North and South Waziristan agencies, and to contain the expanding wave of Talibanization from the tribal areas to the settled areas, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has appointed a new governor to the North-West Frontier... MORE
Riots, Renewed Attacks Underscore Taliban Resilience
Riots erupted following a deadly May 29 collision between a U.S. convoy and civilian vehicles in Kotal-i-Khairkhana outside Kabul. Within minutes, angry protesters surrounded the convoy, hurling stones at coalition troops and chanting "death to America." Within hours, the Afghan capital was under siege as... MORE
Al-Qaeda Doctrine: The Eventual Need for Semi-Conventional Forces
Earlier in 2006, Terrorism Focus published three articles on al-Qaeda's doctrine for what the United States government has taken to calling the "Long War." In recent weeks, Western media reporting on developments in the Iraq and Afghan insurgencies seems to make a fourth article relevant.... MORE
Baloch Insurgents Escalate Attacks on Infrastructure
Since 2002, Pakistan's southwestern province of Balochistan has remained gripped by insurgent violence. In the last few months, this violence has increased in frequency and intensity. The favorite targets of insurgents are energy production sites—such as Sui in Dera Bugti—and energy infrastructure that supplies natural... MORE
Afghanistan and Pakistan Face Threat of Talibanization
The bilateral relationship between Afghanistan and Pakistan remains frozen and is governed by the two countries' geopolitical rivalries, which have unwittingly helped Taliban militancy in the region. As a result, both states are in danger of "Talibanization" (Dawn, April 27). The immediate challenges that face... MORE