Introduction Located at the crossroads of global shipping lanes, Sri Lanka has become a significant recipient of Chinese economic and military influence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). For its part, Sri Lanka has largely welcomed China as a major investor and strategic partner in... MORE

In late 2020, French authorities detained Saif Rahman (a.k.a. Totan) a 24-year-old Bangladeshi national, who was attempting to travel to Islamic State (IS)-controlled territory in Syria. During his interrogation, the French authorities uncovered his extremist beliefs and intention to join IS in the Middle East.... MORE

Introduction  On April 2, Indian forces launched a counter-terrorism operation in a village in the Pulwama district of India-administered Kashmir, killing three people. They were allegedly involved in the murder of a policeman guarding the home of a local politician from India’s ruling party in... MORE

Two years ago, on April 21, 2019, eight suicide bombers affiliated with the Islamic State (IS)-linked local jihadist groups National Towheed Jamaat (NTJ) and Jammiyat-ul Millathu Ibrahim (JMI) carried out deadly terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka, targeting luxury hotels and Catholic churches. The synchronized attacks... MORE

In December 2020, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif offered the Afghan government use of the Iranian-backed Shia militia, Fatemiyoun Brigade, to fight Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-K) in Afghanistan. In an interview with the Afghan English daily, Tolo News, Zarif described the Fatemiyoun fighters... MORE

On February 26, Nooristan, known as Hasan Baba, was killed by Pakistani security forces. He was a commander of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), who had been involved in the murder of more than 50 security forces personnel since 2007. His death represented one of Pakistan’s... MORE

Introduction Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7)—an informal bloc of industrialized nations which includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States—met virtually on February 19 in preparation for an upcoming June summit. The meeting focused on intensifying health cooperation; expanding vaccine... MORE

Introduction Commonly held economic theory generally suggests that foreign aid benefits the recipient. But so far, China’s bilateral relations with Nepal—which are based upon generous pledges of foreign direct investment (FDI)—have created a power imbalance. China’s outsized influence in Nepal was most recently highlighted by... MORE

On February 22, Iranian military forces opened fire on a group of Baluch fuel carriers who were protesting against the government for blocking their ability to take fuel loads into Pakistan. For decades, the livelihoods of thousands of Baluch families have depended on transporting cheap... MORE

The Supreme Court of Pakistan's acquittal of Ahmad Omar Saeed Shaikh is a recent but shocking development in the Daniel Pearl murder case. The kidnapping and beheading of the Wall Street Journal correspondent in Pakistan riveted international attention due to the fact that the victim... MORE