South Asia

By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | – – India’s announcement that it wants to have its automobile fleet go completely electric by 2030 is a bigger deal than it seems on the surface, if in fact the government follows through. Power Minister Piyush Goya said Tuesday at the Confederation of Indian Industry, “We are […]

Afghanistan

Taliban Attackers Kill at Least 140 Soldiers at Afghan Base: Officials

contributors

TeleSur | – – Afghan President Ashraf Ghani visited the base on Saturday, and in a statement condemned the attack as “cowardly” and the work of “infidels.” At least 140 Afghan soldiers were killed by Taliban attackers apparently disguised in military uniforms, officials said on Saturday, in what would be the deadliest attack ever on […]

Afghanistan

“Dear Nasemi: ‘I’m Sorry.'” (ICE doesn’t Keep out Afghan-American Coffins)

contributors

By Jonathan S. Addleton | (Informed Comment) | – – Dear Nasemi – I’m sorry. It is hard to believe that it was almost four years ago that we walked together along a dusty Zabul road in southern Afghanistan. I was a few yards ahead of you when we heard the first of two explosions, […]

Afghanistan

Afghanistan: We Lost a long Time Ago, and are Still at War

Juan Cole

William J. Astore | ( Tomdispatch.com ) | – – America’s war in Afghanistan is now in its 16th year, the longest foreign war in our history. The phrase “no end in sight” barely covers the situation. Prospects of victory — if victory is defined as eliminating that country as a haven for Islamist terrorists […]

Islam

Why ISIL is Targeting Tolerant Sufi Islam

contributors

By Peter Gottschalk | (The Conversation) | – – On Feb. 16, 2017, a bomb ripped through a crowd assembled at the tomb of a Sufi saint, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, in southeastern Pakistan. Soon thereafter, the so-called Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack. In recent times, such attacks have targeted a variety of cherished […]

Afghanistan

The Misuse of American Military Power and Mideast Chaos

contributors

By Danny Sjursen | (Tomdispatch.com) | – – The United States has already lost — its war for the Middle East, that is. Having taken my own crack at combat soldiering in both Iraq and Afghanistan, that couldn’t be clearer to me. Unfortunately, it’s evidently still not clear in Washington. Bush’s neo-imperial triumphalism failed. Obama’s […]

Donald Trump

Pakistanis Baffled, Buoyant over Trump’s Fantastical Praise

Juan Cole

By Frud Bezhan | ( RFE/RL) | – – The office of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has cited a phone conversation with Donald Trump in which it says the U.S. president-elect described nuclear-armed Pakistan as a "fantastic country" and its embattled prime minister as a "terrific guy." The exchange, as described by Sharif’s side, […]

Afghanistan

Afghan Women Take Up Arms Against The Taliban

contributors

By RFE/RL’s Afghan Service The leader of a fledgling women’s militia in northern Afghanistan says dozens of volunteers have joined the fight since a handful of women recently took up arms to rebuff a Taliban attack on their community. Women in the district of Darz-Aab, in Jowzjan Province, initially fought alongside local forces to prevent […]

Islam-hatred

Trumpists beat Muslim-American Child of frmr Fulbrighter, harass Family out of US

contributors

By TeleSur | – – After a series of violent attacks and recrimination, an esteemed Muslim academic flees the U.S. Abdul Aziz returned home from school last week, his face bruised, his body battered, after schoolmates punched him in the face, kicked him in the stomach, and twisted his arm while chanting “Muslim.” Aziz is […]