Afrah Jamal

Published Global Village Space / Nov 2017? The upgraded version of Afghan policy released in August 2017 was followed by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s visit to the region in October. The stopover was unannounced - the location classified and the meeting lasted 2 hours. There was confusion whether it was held at Kabul in some government office or Bagram airbase in a fortified bunker. The state of insecurity may be behind the subterfuge. Soon after the Taliban attacked an army base killing many Afghan soldiers justifying the paranoia. There had been six attacks the week before. More were to follow. The Taliban observe the surges and withdrawals - and adapt, while upping the ante . Nothing changes. Their confidence is unnerving given Kabul’s fortunes are changing for the better at least on the surface and the state seeks a new role for a war ravaged nation. Afghanistan is now a member of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). Additional firepower and military mig...

Published Global Affairs / Dec 2017? The longest war is going according to plan; but whose plan exactly? Not Washington - bogged down in a never-ending nightmare. Or Kabul - besieged and battered, barely holding its head above water. Not Pakistan, a frontline state suffering blowback and living under the weight of America’s expectations - and uncalled for accusations. The dramatic shifts in the geostrategic dynamics are not reflected in Washington’s stance towards Islamabad nor are they inclined towards the multiplayer great game unfolding in the backdrop with Russians, Iranians, Taliban, Indians, Chinese, ISIS and its Coalition forces. Mission Rebuild Afghanistan In the backdrop are nations used as pawns to keep Cold War allies or emergent threats in check. On the side are non-state actors wielded as weapons to thwart ambitions and counter bigger threats like ISIS. And at the centre is a strategy that offers a patchwork quilt of something old, something new, something borrow...

Published in Global Village Space under the title : Fixing Religious Fault lines in the age of ISIS / 23rd Oct 2017 A few days before Muharram, grand proclamations advocating peace and calm that suggested people shun their religious, sectarian and ethnic biases “to promote the great characteristics of sacrifice, unity and discipline” served as a prologue to bridging the ultimate divide. Then came the promises. The clergy reconstituted the ‘National Reconciliatory Council' in a bid to propel the vision of a united front. An awakening followed. Terrorism must go. And there were reality checks. How does Pakistan overcome decades of dissension to realize its dreams of interfaith harmony? Such sentiments while admirable face roadblocks. But then there was a declaration – that religion is a matter between a person and his creator . That no one has to prove they are Muslims. It was a surprisingly candid admission – one that perhaps did not need to be spelled out yet the stat...