External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the 2008 Mumbai terror attack marked a turning point in relations with Pakistan when Indians collectively felt that such behaviour from a neighbouring country could no longer be tolerated. Speaking at Charotar University of Science and Technology, Jaishankar acknowledged India's transformation under Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the last decade, while Pakistan has remained unchanged, continuing with what he termed as its "bad habits."
Present at the signing ceremony was the Taliban's rarely seen Deputy Prime Minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, who lost out in a power struggle last year to be prime minister.
'India won't take anything from Pakistan lying down.'
"If they are a terror organisation, why are you (GoI) talking to them? If they are not a terror organisation, why are you banning their bank accounts. Why are you not recognizing their government? Make up your mind," he said.
'I am worried that Pakistan will still feel compelled to take substantive military action beyond this apparent drone activity.' 'If so, the crisis could persist for a while more and dangerous days are still ahead.'
Mamundzay was appointed by the previous Ashraf Ghani government and he has been operating as the Afghan envoy even after the Taliban came to power in August 2021.
The Taliban's remarks came after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed a $25 million development aid package for Afghanistan in the Union Budget.
Ahmed Shah Massoud's assassination, 9/11 and the defeat and ejection of the Taliban suggested a break in Afghanistan's history, but the events of August 2021 and the Taliban's return shows how deeper continuities remained in place, points out T C A Raghavan, former Indian high commissioner to Pakistan.
Trump thanked the Government of Pakistan for "helping arrest this monster".
Terrorism and insurgency in J&K had subsided when India demolished East Pakistan -- for the simple reason that Pakistan understands power. We need to follow Chanakya's dictum of Saam, Daam, Dand, Bhed for strategising against Pakistan, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd). The ground truth is that unless we are prepared to acknowledge our shortcomings, including massive intelligence failures, punish those responsible and take corrective actions, we will continue in the same vein, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd).
A delegation led by J P Singh, joint secretary (Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran) at the ministry of external affairs, visited Kabul on Thursday, June 2, 2022, to to survey Indian developmental projects in Afghanistan.
Asim Munir and his brand of short-sighted army officers give no inkling of paying heed, changing course or learning lessons from the past, observes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
At least 12 persons, including four children, were killed and 30 injured as two explosive-laden vehicles rammed into the boundary wall of the main cantonment in Bannu in northwest Pakistan on Tuesday while the army personnel neutralised at least six terrorists.
The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) has undergone a significant transformation, evolving from hit-and-run attacks to carrying out sophisticated operations with tactical precision. The group's tactics and targets have become increasingly audacious, targeting security forces, Chinese nationals, and innocent civilians. Experts attribute the BLA's evolution to various factors, including the leadership of Bashir Zeb, the group's growing intelligence network, and its exploitation of the grievances of the Baloch people. The BLA's actions are a cause for concern, as the group's sophisticated attacks pose a major challenge to security forces.
'If Pakistan's army wants to escalate violence in Kashmir, they have an unlimited supply of jihadis they can train and send. That's not an issue for them.'
Zabiullah Mujahid, spokesperson of the Taliban published new 'instructions' attributed to their leader, Mullah Hebatullah Akhundzada, and their implementation was called the 'Sharia responsibility' of the people and the media, reported Voice of America (VOA).
South Africa Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie said he supported calls for a boycott of Afghanistan in the Champions Trophy in Pakistan next month.
'It will remain hostile to Indian interests owing to its close proximity to China.'
'If they aim to remain aligned with the public sentiment, as any democratic government should, then they must respond. Why else would the prime minister have cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia? And why would he have instructed the home minister himself to travel to Srinagar to assess the situation firsthand? This suggests that something is indeed being planned. I am quite certain of that, although the exact form it will take remains to be seen.'
The IP (internet protocol) address of the sender has been traced to Pakistan, said the official.
The Taliban rulers on Tuesday banned university education for women nationwide, as they took decisive steps to crush their right to education and freedom.
At least 30 Afghan Sikhs, including infants and children, flew to India from Kabul on Wednesday, August 3, 2022, after religious persecution escalates in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan.
'Pakistan has power -- they have the power of terrorism and the reluctance of the world to act against them.'
Afghanistan women set to return to cricket field after four-year wait.
An Afghan national working at the Indian consulate in Jalalabad sustained injuries when unidentified persons opened fire at his vehicle. India had closed operations at the consulate in 2020 but a number of local staffers were working at the mission. The Afghan staff member of the consulate, identified as Wadood Khan, was reportedly working as a translator. Khan had left Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover and went to India. He reportedly returned to Afghanistan few months back and rejoined the consulate.
The possibilities of this serviceable thriller are immense but the makers prefer to play it safe and hold back the daredevil in the diplomat's clothing, observes Sukanya Verma.
Joe Root's century in vain as England were shown the door.
The Taliban's rise will see an increase in infiltration on India's western border and terrorist groups in Pakistan will get funding from the Taliban, warns Brigadier Rajamani Kannan (retd).
'It's waging an offensive with no seeming precedent.' 'The fact that it's now entering cities, as opposed to remaining massed around their perimeters, is a game changer.'
Afghanistan may be faced with some off-field distractions in Pakistan with Group B rivals England and South Africa being urged to boycott their matches.
The Taliban knows that Washington holds the key, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Biden administration expects the Modi government to continue to remain as its loyal camp follower even as Washington continues to act in self-interests, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The US intends first to cripple the Afghan government financially through sanctions, freezing of assets, denial of access to international banking, etc, and then proceed to do pretty much what it wants to do with scant regard for Afghanistan's sovereignty, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The Taliban have claimed the seizure of more than 10 out of 34 administrative centers of Afghan provinces.
While talking to mediapersons in Mahbubabad, Sharmila said, "He (KCR) is a dictator, he is a tyrant, there is no Indian Constitution in Telangana, there is only KCR's Constitution. Telangana is the Afghanistan of India and KCR is its Taliban."
Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff Gen Syed Asim Munir visited Balochistan on Saturday amid clashes in the restive province in which 18 security personnel and 23 terrorists have been killed in the last 24 hours. The army chief was given a comprehensive brief on the prevailing security situation in the province and offered prayers at the funeral of the slain soldiers. He also visited the injured soldiers in the Combined Military Hospital Quetta. The military said the terrorists were killed in different areas of troubled Balochistan in the last 24 hours. Terror attacks have increased since the banned militant Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan group broke a fragile ceasefire agreement with the government.
'It is a testing time for our foreign policy which may involve a certain element of taking risks, assessing costs, and expecting failures,' asserts Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Pakistan, in recent months, has been increasingly frustrated by the Taliban government's reluctance to eliminate the terrorist groups, including the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
'Decline of the UN did not start with the Trump administration. It has been happening over the last two decades or more.'
After the Taliban ordered lady newscasters to cover their faces when appearing on television, women presenters for Tolo News obeyed the Taliban diktat.
