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Pakistan at Crossroads

Started by G Atwan; Last updated Feb 29, 08 4:43 AM CST by K Schwartz | View history

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Pakistan at Crossroads

Will moderation or extremism triumph in this bellwether nation?

Pakistan is one of the Islamic world's hottest hotbeds of fundamentalism. But it's also a country with an almost entirely secular (if mildly autocratic) government, headed by strongman Pervez Musharraf, who faces acerbic opposition both from reformers on his left and fundamentalist clerics on his right, and has struggled to preserve an uneasy friendship with the United States by promising to root out terrorism. The December assassination of Benazir Bhutto only adds to the country's unrest, postponing elections that a top Bhutto aide charges were "thoroughly rigged."

Stories

Stories 61 - 80 of 318

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July 2008
- Pakistan: US Not Hunting bin Laden on Our Turf
  
  Associated Press | Jul 13, 08 8:31 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Pakistan's foreign minister said yesterday that his country has no plans to allow US or other foreign troops into the country to search for Osama bin Laden and other al-Qaeda members, AP reports. Shah Mahmood Qureshi says that Pakistani troops, plus "grassroots" efforts to stop terrorism before it can begin, are sufficient measures for combating militant activity. More »
- Islamic Militants Now Migrating to Pakistan to Fight
  
  New York Times | Jul 10, 08 5:34 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Pakistan, rather than Iraq, has become the preferred destination for foreign fighters looking to join Islamic militant organizations, reports the New York Times . Websites are increasingly encouraging migrating Sunni extremists to go to Pakistan and Afghanistan, where they can join a "winning fight," rather than participate in the waning Iraqi insurgence, according to American intelligence officials. More »
- Pakistan Suicide Blast Kills 11 at Mosque Memorial
  
  New York Times | Jul 7, 08 3:37 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A suicide bombing near Pakistan’s Red Mosque killed at least 11 and wounded more than 22, most of them police officers, the New York Times reports. Thousands were nearby yesterday to observe the anniversary of a showdown between militants and security forces which killed more than 100 people last year. The bomber dodged tight security, confirming government fears of another terrorist attack on the date. More »
- Bhutto Investigation Going Nowhere
  
  Los Angeles Times | Jul 4, 08 1:10 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - There doesn’t seem to be much urgency behind the hunt for Benazir Bhutto’s killers, the Los Angeles Times reports, though her party has come to power in Pakistan since the Dec. 27 assassination. The government still hasn’t commissioned an independent investigation, and police have all but abandoned the case. “It looks as if it’s a forgotten chapter,” one retired general said More »
June 2008
- US and Pakistan Let al-Qaeda Regroup
  
  New York Times | Jun 30, 08 9:00 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Nearly seven years after 9/11, America has not only failed to capture Osama bin Laden; it has also allowed al-Qaeda to rebuild itself in lawless northwest Pakistan, near the Afghan border. The New York Times conducted more than four dozen interviews to discover how rivalries among American agencies, trouble with Pervez Musharraf, and the distraction of Iraq allowed al-Qaeda to foil Operation Cannonball, a highly classified CIA initiative. More »
- Pakistan Routs Taliban Forces in Major Offensive
  
  CNN | Jun 28, 08 1:25 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Pakistan blasted suspected militant hideouts today, launching its biggest offensive against Taliban forces since electing a government last March. The military cleared three militant outposts and forced the insurgents west, CNN reports. For weeks, tensions have mounted between militants and Islamabad, which abandoned its diplomatic strategy as insurgent strikes increased. More »
- Afghans Accuse Pakistan of Karzai Plot
  
  New York Times | Jun 25, 08 1:08 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Afghanistan publicly accused Pakistan of plotting the April assassination attempt on President Hamid Karzai, saying it has evidence linking Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence to the deed. A spokesman said phone records, documents, and confessions from suspects proved the ISI harbored "the real schemers and organizers" behind the attack. More »
- US Can't Be Sure Pakistan's $5.6B Went to Fight Terror
  
  CNN | Jun 25, 08 12:28 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - The Defense Department cannot show that nearly $6 billion the US has sent to Pakistan since 2001 has been used, as intended, to fight terrorism. In a report yesterday, the Government Accountability Office said the Pentagon hadn’t properly tracked the funds, CNN reports, blindly signing off on questionable charges—leading critics to charge that Pakistan bolstered its own defense capability at US expense. More »
- Leaderless Pakistan Drifts Toward Chaos
  
  New York Times | Jun 24, 08 5:10 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Four months after historic elections in Pakistan, the nation has descended into leaderless chaos, Western diplomats and military leaders believe. The void has serious consequences for fighting militants in Pakistan's lawless northwest on the border with Afghanistan, reports the New York Times. More »
- Karzai Warns Pakistan He'll Send Troops Over Border
  
  BBC | Jun 15, 08 2:33 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - Citing the right to self defense, Afghan President Hamid Karzai warned that his country may send troops across the border with Pakistan to fight militants who have killed Afghans, BBC reports. "When they cross the territory from Pakistan to come and kill Afghans and to kill coalition troops it exactly gives us the right to go back and do the same." More »
- Rival Calls for Musharraf's Head
  
  New York Times | Jun 14, 08 5:56 PM CDT
  
  (Newser) - A political rival blasted President Pervez Musharraf today, leading a massive crowd to chant “Hang him, hang him,” the New York Times reports. In a televised address that capped off days of protest in Islamabad, Nawaz Sharif grew heated: “We asked you to quit with honor after the election but you didn’t,” he said. “Now people have given a new judgment for you.” More »
- US Releases Pakistan Border Clash Video
  
  Associated Press | Jun 12, 08 7:50 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - US-led coalition forces have released a video shot from a surveillance drone showing a controversial clash on the Afghan-Pakistan border. Pakistan claims the engagement led to an airstrike that killed 11 of its troops, but the coalition says the footage proves that US and Afghan forces were simply returning fire after being attacked, the AP reports. More »
- Pakistan Condemns US Air Strike That Killed 11 Troops
  
  Washington Post | Jun 11, 08 9:46 AM CDT
  
  (Newser) - At least 11 Pakistani soldiers and 10 other people were killed today in an ugly border incident that could strain US/Pakistani ties. US fighters reportedly launched an air strike inside Pakistan’s mountainous tribal area, backing up Afghan troops fighting Taliban forces. The matter was complicated, however, because Pakistani troops were apparently fighting alongside the Taliban, the Washington Post reports. Mor