A couple of years ago, Iraq was beset with sectarian strife, with Sunnis and Shias attacking each other. Shia death squads (along with infiltration in the army and police) would kill Sunnis in the capital Baghdad, and in other areas under their control, and Sunni dominated groups such as Al-Qaeda in Iraq and other such [...]

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In April, there was wide-spread international condemnation when a legislation catering to the Shia sect in Afghanistan was passed. This legislation tilted the gender balance very strongly towards men, something not uncommon in Islamic countries. However, since Afghanistan was a place where troops from many nations were fighting the Taliban, and many of these troops [...]

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Ever since June, there has been some amount of debate over whether the monsoon will be good this year. The met department was predicting a slight shortfall in the rains, and there was also news that another El Nino effect would be in place that would impact the amount of rains. As the months of [...]

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For Pakistan, Baitullah Mehsud has been one of the people who have caused it the most grief. Baitullah was the leader of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the leader of what has been called the Pakistani Taliban. He first became internationally famous when he was blamed for being behind the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, and in [...]

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