Archive

The Fall of Kabul An unedifying account of a thriving graveyard One thing is certain: this time the Taliban has conquered Kabul without resorting to violence and bloodshed and that has made the Afghan endgame all the more intricate and complex. Presumably, the Taliban leadership has undergone a change of …

THE CHALLENGE OF ISLAMOPHOBIA Prime Minister Imran Khan has consistently raised the issue of Islamophobia in the world in general, and the West in particular. He even used the forum of the United Nations General Assembly to highlight the perils associated with singling out Islam and Muslims and holding them …

Is Global Populism on the Rise Interestingly, the phenomenon of populism has led many scholars, social scientists, journalists and academia to jump on the bandwagon of “Populism Studies.” Especially, journalists are prone to the overuse of ‘populism,’ labelling it as populist phenomena for which other synonyms like ‘nationalism’ or ‘nativism’ …

Iran’s Foreign Policy under Raisi What will be the future of JCPOA? Ultraconservative Ebrahim Raisi was inaugurated on August 05 as the eighth President of Iran, a country whose hopes of shaking off a dire economic crisis hinge on reviving a nuclear deal with world powers. In his inaugural speech, …

Human Rights in the Digital Age Human rights are enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and in accompanying covenants and instruments, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). While the responsibility for upholding, safeguarding and promoting human rights and fundamental freedoms falls on nation-states, …

China-Afghanistan Relations under Taliban … and prospects of regional integration After fighting for more than fifteen years since 2006; the Taliban have conquered Afghanistan by defeating world’s powerful alliance, i.e. NATO, and a superpower, i.e. the United States, through their blood and sweat. Afghan National Army and police could put …

The IPCC Assessment Reports Why are they significant in understanding climate change? Introduction Every few years, the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which was set up in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), produces assessment reports (ARs) that are the most comprehensive …

Metaverse Will you want to live there? Facebook is investing significantly in creating metaverse, which, for long, was a term found only in dystopian science-fiction novels. When CEO Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, recently joined a conference call with analysts to discuss the company’s latest quarterly results, much of the focus was …

Water Scarcity in Pakistan Water Scarcity When an individual does not have access to safe and affordable water to satisfy her or his needs for drinking, washing or other livelihoods, we call that person water-insecure. When a large number of people in an area are water insecure for a significant …

How do Germany’s Elections Work? Introduction On September 26, Germany will hold its quadrennial parliamentary elections that will determine the Chancellor to succeed Angela Merkel who has led the country since 2005. Germany is a federal parliamentary democracy in which the most powerful office is the Chancellor – as head …