South Asia

By Juan Cole President Barack Obama of Hawaii had fondly dreamed of bidding turbulent and unrewarding West Asia farewell and turning the attentions of American diplomacy to East and South East Asia. From his point of view, the Bush administration had unwisely entangled the US too deeply in the Middle East, where no good deed […]

India

Inside the Mosul of the ‘Islamic State’: Manhunts, Salafi Coercion and Fired Christians

contributors

Niqash | Special Correspondent | Mosul | It has been several weeks since Sunni Muslim extremists took over the northern Iraqi city of Mosul. Locals continue to adapt to their new circumstances; tensions are rising because of fighting outside the city, fuel and food stocks continue to dwindle and the Sunni militia are starting to […]

censorship

Ruling Hindu Tea Party wants to “Develop” India for its 1%

contributors

By Gyanendra Pandey New Delhi Through the President’s address to Parliament on June 9, 2014, the newly elected Indian Government has officially outlined its short and longer-term agenda. The emphasis, as expected, is on faster economic growth. Questions of welfare and security for the poor and disadvantaged are, however, very superficially addressed. This has to […]

Afghanistan

Afghanistan and the Artificial US War on Terror (Anand Gopal’s New Book)

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole I guest-hosted a book salon over at Firedoglake on Sunday concentrating on Anand Gopal’s expose of the so-called ‘war on terror’ in Afghanistan. Below is my review of the book. Do go to FDL to read the whole salon, where Mr. Gopal was kind enough to answer our questions about the book […]

Afghanistan

Afghanistan Elections: Abdullah refuses to Concede, Protests Erupt charging Fraud

contributors

By Frud Bezhan via RFE/RL KABUL — As allegations of fraud in Afghanistan’s runoff election pile up, protest movements have mobilized against what they see as systematic vote-rigging. Two groups have taken the lead in protesting the June 14 presidential vote, holding separate demonstrations and sit-ins in several locations around Kabul. In various events that […]

Afghanistan

Pakistan Needs Regional and Global Alliances to Fight the Extremists

contributors

By Muqtedar Khan Pakistan on Sunday launched another military operation — Zarb-e-Azb — against the extremists in Waziristan. The name of the operation means sharp and cutting or surgical. This is not the first such operation and perhaps will not be the last of its kind. But if this one is executed well, it may […]

Afghanistan

US Military Fail: Long Asian Land Wars a Route to Disaster since 1963

contributors

By Tom Engelhardt via Tomdispatch.com The United States has been at war — major boots-on-the-ground conflicts and minor interventions, firefights, air strikes, drone assassination campaigns, occupations, special ops raids, proxy conflicts, and covert actions — nearly nonstop since the Vietnam War began. That’s more than half a century of experience with war, American-style, and yet […]

FATA

Pakistan’s War on Terror? Gov’t bombs Taliban after Deadly Airport Attack

contributors

Pakistan pounds ‘terrorist hideouts’ after Karachi attack (via AFP) Pakistan carried out early morning air strikes Tuesday on a militant-infested tribal district, killing at least 15 people, the military said, a day after a brazen Taliban assault on Karachi airport. A military statement said “nine terrorist hideouts… ——— ABC: “Taliban Claim Responsibility for Pakistan […]

Afghanistan

Dear Sen. McCain: No, the Taliban Prisoners didn’t Carry out 9/11; but you Supported Muslim Radicals

Juan Cole

By Juan Cole Sen. John McCain on Sunday maintained that President Obama, in releasing the five officials who had served in the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in the 1990s and until 2001, had released people who were “hard core al-Qaeda who were responsible for 9/11.” I am shocked and dismayed that the knowledgeable Sen. McCain […]