Over the past few years, we’ve heard news about army operations and Intelligence-Based Operations (IBOs) in KP, Balochistan and Sindh but when it comes to Punjab, the news are either too low or almost all of them talk about covert IBOs. To date, Punjab has never faced any military operation. This exception is not legitimize demands for one anew, but rather to question the motive behind not targeting dangerous militant
We live in precarious times. The advent of the Internet was meant to promote the concept of a ‘global village’ but alas, here too the elements of hatred, hostility and strife spared no opportunity to spread discord and discontent rampaging across the Muslim world. With the emergence of two radically opposing sub-factions within Islam (Wahhabi and Shia schools of thought) emerged fault lines which were otherwise hidden from the public
The Worldfolio, a renowned global content service provider, released a report in October acknowledging the increased political and economic stability in Pakistan. The report specially noted that terrorist incidents had declined by 70% in 2015 as compared to 2014. Pakistan Insider presents a timeline of the most prominent events from the previous year which showcases improvements in domestic and foreign-assisted programs to counter terrorism, violence and extremism. The timeline will
On December 21, Mr Sartaj Aziz, the octogenarian Adviser to Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Foreign Affairs, issued a detailed statement before the Senate of Pakistan on ‘Foreign Policy of Pakistan: Achievements and Challenges’. Mr Aziz highlighted the difficult challenges Pakistan has faced as a member of the world community while also mentioning what he said were the current government’s ‘achievements’ on this crucial domain. Before I embark
The recent meeting between NSAs and Foreign Secretaries of nuclear-armed rivals Pakistan and India in Bangkok caught everyone by surprise. The timing of the meeting, which witnessed participation by other senior officials from both sides, is especially noteworthy. Less than a day after the meeting, it was announced that Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj would be participating in the ‘Heart of Asia’ conference along with a delegation, beginning December
General Raheel Sharif, Pakistan’s 15th army chief, is currently on an official five-day visit to the US. This comes almost a month after his visit to Turkey. Many negative assertions have been by world media on his recent visit. Some said he wanted to “embarrass” Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s recent US visit whereas the Indian media, as expected, mounted another cheap attack by claiming that General Raheel “invited himself”. Although
A vast majority of Pakistanis are well familiar with the name “Doval”. Some even pronounce it as “Devil” to amuse themselves and their listeners. These and other alterations all refer to Ajit Doval, India’s National Security Adviser in office since May 30, 2014. Who is this person and why is he discussed too often by government officials and security analysts around the world? Profile Ajit Kumar Doval is a former
On a calm weekend, Sunday the 18th of October 2015, media groups reported that Lt Gen (retd) Nasser Khan Janjua of the Pakistan Army had been selected for appointment as Pakistan’s next National Security Adviser (NSA). Profile News observers in Pakistan have been familiar with Janjua’s name since the Kayani era. He was, until recently, Commander of the Quetta-based 12 Corps; a position which concurrently made him Commander of Pakistan
The hardliner Hindutva government of BJP-elect Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cleared the bill to establish three new joint (army, navy, airforce) organizations, The Times of India reported on October 17, 2015. These organizations are the Defence Cyber Agency, Defence Space Agency and a Special Operations Division. The focus of this article is on India’s special forces, hence the other two proposed organizations will be discussed on a later date.
Year after year, the Pakistan faces a multitude of natural and man-made disasters. Examples of the former include earthquakes and floods whereas the latter includes fires, critical infrastructure meltdown, etc. Despite the fact that National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has an office in the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, it fails to effectively dispense relief efforts, let alone synergize the efforts of its provincial offshoots. After the deadly October 8, 2005 earthquake