By Asif Haroon Raja Iran-US antagonism started peaking in the aftermath of Islamic revolution in Iran, followed by seizure of American Embassy in Tehran by student militants in November 1979 and holding 52 Americans hostage for next 444 days. An American rescue operation ended in a disaster, which further bolstered Khomeini’s image in Iran and Islamic world. Hostages were released as a result of secret agre ...

Asif Haroon Raja During the Reza Shah Pahlavi era in Iran from 1953 to March 1979, Iran-Pakistan relations were extraordinarily warm. Iran supported Kashmir cause, extended military support during 1965 Indo-Pak war and full diplomatic support in the 1971 war with India. Iran helped in quashing 1973 insurgency in Balochistan. After Shah’s departure, certain events like Islamic revolution in Iran, Jihad again ...

Asif Haroon Raja During the Reza Shah Pahlavi era in Iran from 1953 to March 1979, Iran-Pakistan relations were extraordinarily warm. Iran supported Kashmir cause, extended military support during 1965 Indo-Pak war and full diplomatic support in the 1971 war with India. Iran helped in quashing 1973 insurgency in Balochistan. After Shah’s departure, certain events like Islamic revolution in Iran, Jihad again ...

Asif Haroon Raja Once Bajaur came into the loop of terrorism in 2006, it became the exclusive domain of Maulvi Faqir Muhammad because of easy inflow of arms, equipment and funds from Kunar. This route of supply was also used for Swat via Dir. Srarogha within Mehsuds inhabited South Waziristan (SW) became the command centre of TTP under Baitullah Mehsud, where Qari Hussain trained small boys aged between 11 ...

By Asif Haroon Raja Nawaz led team is thinking and talking high and has announced highly ambitious mega projects which it intends completing during its mandated five-year tenure expiring in May 2018. Some of the main projects include Pak-China economic corridor linking Kashgar with Gawadar by Highway and rail, converting Gawadar into free port like Hong Kong, bullet train, Lahore-Karachi motorway, metro sys ...

By Asif Haroon Raja Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) was founded by socio-political philosopher Abul Ala Maudoodi on August 26, 1941. He opposed capitalism, socialism and secularism but advocated democracy as an integral part of Islamic political ideals. He had close ties with Muslim Brotherhood leader Qutb. Although Maudoodi rendered great service for the cause of Islam, he was among the staunch opponents of idea of P ...

By Zaheerul Hassan 12 died, 80 injured and millions of rupees damage caused to the properties of the people in the sectarian violence of 16 November in Rawalpindi. Authorities have imposed a curfew for two days in Rawalpindi after sectarian clashes erupted at a Muharram 10 procession near Fawara Chowk. Beyond any doubt, one can deduce that the sadism resulted due to the negligence of local administration an ...

By Sajjad Shaukat Although opportunism is very common in international and domestic politics, yet no patriotic individual applies it against his own native country. In this regard, Pakistan’s former Ambassador to the United States, Hussain Haqqani has broken all the records by rapidly changing loyalties, while serving the foreign interests at the cost of Pakistan. As an ambitious student leader, Hussain Haq ...