
Latest Articles about South Asia

Evading Scrutiny, Spreading Mayhem: How Jaish-e-Muhammad Chief Maulana Masood Azhar is Crafting Chaos in Kashmir
Maulana Masood Azhar, the founding leader of Jaish-e-Muhammad (Army of Muhammad—JeM), a Pakistan-based terrorist group blamed for violence against India over the past two decades—including the latest vehicle-borne improvised explosive device (VBIED) attack in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) targeting a security convoy. On February 14,... MORE

Mohammad Fazl: Military Commander-turned-Taliban-Negotiator
In October 2018, the Taliban announced that Mullah Mohammad Fazl, Khairullah Khairkhwa, Abdul Haq Wasiq, Norullah Noori, and Mohammad Nabi would be among its representatives at upcoming talks with the United States. The five, who were imprisoned at the U.S. military detention facility at Guantanamo,... MORE

Rivalries and Relics: Examining China’s Buddhist Public Diplomacy
In October 2018, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) hosted over 1,000 Buddhist scholars and representatives from 55 countries and regions at the Fifth World Buddhist Forum (WBF) in Putian, in China’s southeastern Fujian Province (Xinhua, October 28 2018). First held in 2006, and since... MORE

Briefs
Iran: Jaish al-Adl Attack Could See Increased Iran-India Cooperation Brian M. Perkins Iran has seen a recent surge in terrorism incidents within the country over the past year, particularly in the provinces of Khuzestan and Sistan-e-Baluchistan. Among the most notable incidents have been attacks on... MORE

Can the Kremlin Finally Realize the North-South Transit Corridor?
One of Vladimir Putin’s earliest proposed mega-projects—first announced on September 12, 2000—calls for the creation of a North-South transportation corridor linking Russia with the Caspian littoral states, including Iran, as well as India and Sri Lanka. Such a transit network would permit these countries to... MORE

US Retreat From Afghanistan Opens New Strategic Opportunities for Russia in Central Asia
President Donald Trump’s voiced intention to reduce the United States’ military presence in Afghanistan has triggered a rush of Kremlin activity in Central Asia (see EDM, February 14). Russia sees the expected US retreat as a window of opportunity for consolidating its own interests, which... MORE

The Balochistan Insurgency and the Threat to Chinese Interests in Pakistan
Introduction On November 23, 2018, insurgents of the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) attacked the PRC Consulate in Karachi, Pakistan. The assault resulted in the deaths of seven people, including two police officers and three of the attackers (Dawn, November 23 2018). One month after this... MORE

Russian Warnings of Afghan Threats Bring Decreasing Dividends in Central Asia
Over the last month, Russian officials have suggested that militant groups in Afghanistan so threaten the countries of Central Asia that the latter should cooperate more closely with Russia in order to defend themselves. But in contrast to such campaigns in the past, Moscow is... MORE


BLA’s Suicide Squad: Majeed Fidayeen Brigade
Background The Baluchistan Liberation Army (BLA) is considered one of the oldest Baluch nationalist-separatist terrorist groups operating in the Baluchistan province of Pakistan. The ongoing insurgency started in 2006. The BLA is led by Harbayar Marri, whose father, Nawab Khair Bakhsh Marri, founded the BLA... MORE