Category Archives: Afghanistan

Prospect

Afghanistan, Constitution, Islamisation, Politics

By Rifaat Hamid Ghani

WHETHER it was intended to be such or not, would its citizens wish the establishment of Pakistan be a receptacle for any variant of Islamic/Muslim fundamentalism pervading politics and determining social behavior?

Citing words and conduct, most would say history shows that this was not the motivation or goal of the Quaid-i-Azam and his lieutenants. Indeed, some of the leading Ulema were critical of the concept of a separate state for the Subcontinent’s Muslims.

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Baloch paradox

Afghanistan, Balochistan, Book Reviews, Children and Youth, Culture and the Arts, Education, History

By Zubeida Mustafa

BALOCHISTAN is a paradox — like a jigsaw puzzle with pieces that do not fit. The recent tragedy — the brutal mass murder of 11 Hazara miners in Mach — is testimony to this paradox. It is bizarre that, periodically, a cultured people with a rich tradition of poetry and learning should be subjected to such atrocity on the soil of Balochistan by brutes under the protection of non-Baloch.

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After the war in Afghanistan

Afghanistan, Foreign Policy of Pakistan, General, Information

By ‎Zubeida Mustafa

Taliban and U.S. officials shake hands over Afghan peace deal
U.S. peace envoy Zalmay Khalilzad, left, and Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar shake hands after signing the peace agreement. (Hussein Sayed / AP)

Truthdig is proud to present this article as part of Global Voices: Truthdig Women Reporting, a series from a network of female correspondents around the world who are dedicated to pursuing truth within their countries and elsewhere.

In normal times, Saturday would have been a red-letter day. The deal signed by the Taliban and the U.S. in Doha, Qatar, promised peace to a land torn by war for over four decades.

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Pakistan Is Cleaning Up Trump’s Mideast Mess

Afghanistan, Economy, Foreign Policy of Pakistan, War and Peace

By Zubeida Mustafa

Truthdig is proud to present this article as part of its Global Voices: Truthdig Women Reporting, a series from a network of female correspondents around the world who are dedicated to pursuing truth within their countries and elsewhere.

The Middle East has always been a difficult region for the West, especially for the United States. During the Cold War era, America’s efforts to establish its hold over the region’s key oil-producing countries backfired, resulting in anger and resentment in those countries. Be it the CIA-backed coup to overthrow the Mossadegh government in Iran for nationalizing the oil industry in 1953 or Charlie Wilson’s war to oust the Soviets from Afghanistan in the 1980s, the results have been devastating for the U.S. The repercussions from these American campaigns continue to resonate even today in Afghanistan and Iran. Are the two connected in any way?

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