The Makkah Pact’s Evolving Architecture
The formalization of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement (MJDA) between Pakistan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Türkiye marks a watershed moment in the strategic geopolitical alignment of the Muslim world. Since its inception, the pact has been subjected to intense international scrutiny, with analysts debating its long-term implications for the broader region. However, the […]
Haqqani’s Proposal to Resume Communication Channels
The Interior Minister of the Interim Afghan Government has proposed a dedicated bilateral mechanism to address contentious issues with Pakistan. Islamabad has taken note of this proposal. The response from Pakistan is measured but firm. State-level dialogue remains welcome. What Kabul offers in words, however, must finally be matched by actions on the ground. This […]
Taliban’s Blame Game has Failed
Basir Mazhari, the Taliban regime’s police chief for Badakhshan, has once again pointed fingers across the Durand Line. He claims Pakistan is running training centres for armed opponents of the Taliban regime along the border. The timing is telling. This accusation surfaces just as the Taliban regime faces growing resistance, internal fractures and mounting security […]
Why May 2025 War Was Not a Deterrence Failure
There is a category error sitting at the heart of Sadia Tasleem’s recent critique of Pakistan’s nuclear posture, and once you spot it, the rest of her argument starts to unravel. She looks at what happened in May 2025, a conventional Indian strike inside Pakistani territory followed by a calibrated Pakistani response, and calls it […]
CDF Visit to Iran: Further Development in Pakistan’s Bridge-Building Credentials
ield Marshal Asim Munir landed in Tehran on 24 August, accompanied by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi. The timing was not subtle. US-Iran talks had stalled, regional tensions were climbing, and Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces chose exactly this moment to show up in the Iranian capital with a full diplomatic entourage. When a country’s top […]
Inside the Provincial Capital: NRF’s Faizabad Strike and the Limits of Taliban Control
At 11:35 in the morning on 25 August, a vehicle carrying Taliban personnel came under attack near the Fifth Police Zone in Faizabad. The National Resistance Front claimed the operation, reporting three Taliban fighters killed, two more wounded, and the vehicle itself destroyed. What makes this strike worth examining closely is not the casualty count […]
Condemning Israel’s Brazen Assault on UNRWA and International Law
Israeli occupation forces stormed the UNRWA Qalandia Vocational Training Center in occupied East Jerusalem last week and forced everyone inside to leave. Staff were expelled. They have not been allowed back. Among those present for the operation was Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right settler minister whose presence at the scene turned a security operation into something […]
Resistance Reaches the Taliban’s Own Backyard in Kandahar
An operation in the Delawar area of Arghandab district killed a Taliban regime member last week. The Afghanistan United Front claimed responsibility, saying the target had spent his time extorting, harassing, and tormenting local residents. On the surface, this reads like one more entry in a long list of scattered attacks across Afghanistan. But location […]
Three Attacks in a Single Day Exposes Afghanistan’s Underground War
Three attacks, three provinces, one day. Kandahar in the south, Paktika near the Pakistani border, Badakhshan tucked into Afghanistan’s northeast corner. On paper these look like isolated incidents scattered across a large country. Put together, they tell a different story. Four years after the Taliban swept back into power, armed resistance has not gone away. […]