'India would not like to see Pakistani domination and tutelage of Afghanistan against Indian security and economic interests.'
I am staying here for the last five years. The situation is really bad there (in Afghanistan). The people staying there are far from the normal situation. People are trying to come out and move to either Iran, Tajikistan or India just to save themselves.
It is learnt that the consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif will continue to operate through the local staff members.
'Siddiqui was alive when the Taliban captured him. The Taliban verified Siddiqui's identity and then executed him, as well as those with him'
'Throughout the nearly 20-year US-led war, State sponsorship from Pakistan has been a constant.'
The Taliban stole a large amount of weapons as well.
India has not been invited to a crucial meeting being convened by Russia on the fast-evolving situation in Afghanistan that is expected to see the participation of Pakistan, China and the US, people familiar with the development said on Thursday.
Top military commanders of Afghanistan, Pakistan and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation on Sunday discussed border control measures and mechanisms to avert "untoward incidents" along the Afghan frontier, as the three sides resumed high-level military contact after a break of several months.
As many as 10 Taliban fighters, dressed in Afghan army uniforms and driving military vehicles, talked their way onto the base and opened fire on soldiers.
United States Vice President Joe Biden on Monday made an unannounced trip to Afghanistan to have an on ground assessment of the situation in the war-torn country, less than six months before the scheduled start of drawdown of American troops.
Faced with a no win situation, elements in Pakistan have so far been, and would continue to calibrate the situation in such a way that a state of stalemate protracts. And, as such a game is played out, the Americans will be permitted to fly their unmanned aerial vehicles and target at their discretion.
The activation of diplomatic channels is likely to yield better results than a simmering hostility, recommends Ajai Shukla.
The global jihadi network is under pressure but it needs a long-term strategy to keep it in control, writes Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
On Sunday, after 13 years of war, over 500 deaths and over 20 billion, United Kingdom withdrew from Afghanistan. In a touching ceremony, the Union Jack flag was lowered at Camp Bastion, which has been the center of UK operations in Afghanistan since 2006. British Prime Minister David Cameron vowed that Britain will 'never forget those who made the ultimate sacrifice' and Labour leader Ed Miliband said the handover was a "time to remember those who have served Britain so courageously in Afghanistan over the last decade".
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.
Pakistani Taliban has warned that boys and girls of its suicide squad will launch "massive" strikes across the country, including the commercial hub of Karachi, if military operation in Swat and other tribal areas are not halted immediately.
"Defence Minister Abdullah Habibi and Army Chief of Staff Qadam Shah Shahim stepped down with immediate effect," the Khaama Press quoted the Office of the President, ARGPalace, as saying on Monday.
Five soldiers were killed and 10 wounded, officials said. Two of the attackers blew themselves up, two were killed in fighting and one was captured.
'I am committed to my country if there is respect for democracy and human rights. If not possible then I will prefer to stay in India or any other western country'
The Afghan tradition of gaining control of areas does not necessarily involve combat. Most engagements are settled through negotiations and pay-offs before battle is joined. This style of fighting is peculiar to Afghanistan, explains Ajai Shukla, who witnessed such a transaction between the Taliban and the Northern Alliance in November 2001.
'India has to ensure its borders are properly sealed and there is no infiltration from PoK.
Afghanistan's political district was rocked by violence on Thursday when Taliban terrorists blew up a British embassy vehicle and later gunfire broke out at an army base.
'The worst case scenario for Pakistan is a full-scale Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.' 'Pakistani militants would be inspired and emboldened and seek to replicate the Taliban's successes in Pakistan.'
Just two soldiers are known to have survived unscathed after the attack on the base.
'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.'
At least 250 people have died amid massive avalanches and flooding in Afghanistan.
'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).
Their leaders in the provinces, which have been under the control of Taliban commanders for several months now, speak the language of the bigot. Women are known to have been abducted and enslaved. Several young girls have simply disappeared.
Haider's release was the second successful instance of a dramatic rescue in a high-profile kidnapping case after slain Punjab governor Salman Taseer's son Shahbaz, who was abducted in 2011, was found in March after spending nearly five years in captivity.
'Trump's new discovery is that Pakistan and its army are virtually god's gift to mankind.' 'They are required to facilitate a relatively orderly American exit from Afghanistan,' points out Ambassador G Parthasarathy, who served as India's high commissioner to Pakistan.
An intense 25-hour gun-battle between security forces and terrorists outside the Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif came to end on Monday night with the killing of all the attackers who attempted to storm the Mission building.
'If Islamic extremists regain power in Afghanistan, Pakistan will lead them to Kashmir as a fighting arena again. India needs to fortify Kashmir and prepare against these Islamic extremists before they come again.'
Accusing Pakistan of continuing to support "proxy war" in Jammu and Kashmir despite suffering casualties due to terror on its soil, Army Chief Gen Dalbir Singh on Tuesday said threats and challenges have been growing because of the "active borders".
Sergeant Rupert Frere, who transferred from a role in bomb disposal to become a photographer in the Royal Logistic Corps, won no fewer than five of the professional categories.
Karzai has steadfastly opposed direct talks between the US and the Taliban, wanting Afghan ownership of the "reconciliation process", as the reintegration of the Taliban into the mainstream is referred to.
The winners of the annual US Military Photographer of the Year competition showcase the compelling body of work military photographers compiled in 2014.
'What should worry India and which needs to be expressed is Russia's simultaneous proximity to both China and Pakistan from a strategic angle. That hasn't happened ever before,' says Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
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The Indian Army must be given a free hand to retaliate punitively at one or more places of its choosing on the LoC. The aim should be to cause maximum damage to the forward posts of the Pakistan army, particularly those through which recent attacks have been launched, thereby raising the cost for the army, says Gurmeet Kanwal.
'The Mansoor Taliban is really an extension of the Haqqani Network which in turn is an instrument of the ISI. With Ashraf Ghani ready to dance to Pakistani tunes and with the Haqqani Network becoming part of the Afghan government, Pakistan is all set to see the fruition of its strategic policy,' says Sushant Sareen.
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