Introduction In recent decades, the nature of regional conflicts has shifted from direct warfare to proxy conflicts, with states increasingly pursuing their strategic objectives through the use of non-state armed groups. The Islamic Republic of Iran is among the states with extensive experience in establishing and utilizing proxy networks. The Fatemiyoun Brigade, composed largely of Afghan fighters, forms part of […]

Drawing on ten public discussions from the India AI Impact Summit 2026, this article highlights key outlooks on open source in AI that are likely to shape policy and governance conversations going forward. At the recently concluded India AI Impact Summit, several discussions brought renewed focus to the future of global open-source artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, positioning it as an […]

Mizoram: Reinforcing Peace The developments of April 2026 mark a decisive turning point in Mizoram’s internal security landscape, with the surrender of 43 cadres of the Hmar People’s Convention-Democratic (HPC-D) on April 30, 2026, and the signing of the Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) on April 14, 2026, representing the formal conclusion of the last active insurgent movement in the State. […]

Tokyo would have to surmount a lot of obstacles—not least Western sanctions—if it wanted to return Russian oil imports to even modest pre-2022 volumes. About once a year, Japan’s foreign policy establishment discusses an apparently imminent turnaround in relations with Moscow. The triggers vary: a vague statement by the prime minister, or an interview given by a second-tier politician. Most […]

On April 22, 2026, the Afghan media outlet Hasht-e-Subh published a Dari-language article, examining the current situation in the Middle East and arguing that the region is moving away from the post-Cold War order led by the U.S. toward a more unstable and multipolar system shaped by tensions involving the United States, Iran, Israel, and the Arab states, alongside the […]

There is a certain kind of “moderate” Muslim scholar whom empire adores: calm in tone, allergic to resistance, fluent in scripture, and permanently available to explain to the oppressed why their rebellion is impractical, premature, emotional, immoral, or insufficiently spreadsheeted. Javed Ahmad Ghamidi has spent the post-9/11 era perfecting this role. He is not merely a theologian of moderation. He […]

Reports emerging from Afghanistan suggest growing concerns over the militarization of civilian spaces in Kabul, with allegations that weapons, ammunition, and possibly armed operatives have been positioned inside densely populated neighborhoods. According to claims circulated by Afghanistan Green Trend and attributed to former officials, including Amrullah Saleh, certain urban districts have been repurposed in ways that blur the distinction between […]

Taliban leader in a decree dismissed Hamdullah Nomani as minister of communications and replaced him with Abdul Ahad Fazli, the Taliban governor of Faryab province. The decree by Hibatullah Akhundzada also includes the appointment of a deputy minister, four provincial governors, eight deputy governors, five police chiefs and a senior official in the Taliban prison administration. Nomani had been appointed […]