Double land mine blasts killed one person and wounded at least 18 on Thursday in Pakistan’s southwest, a police officer said. The first mine exploded when a truck was passing through a valley in coal-rich Duki district in Baluchistan province. The second detonated when counter-terrorism officials and civilians were examining the initial blast site, said district police officer Asif Haleem. […]

Afghanistan’s hardline Taliban leaders have threatened to militarily suppress unprecedented violent public protests in a northeastern border region against a nationwide ban on poppy cultivation. The unrest erupted last Friday when the Taliban’s anti-narcotics forces began destroying poppy fields in Badakhshan province, prompting angry farmers to resist it with the support of local residents. Multiple sources confirmed Sunday that Taliban […]

IS-KP: Potent challenger On April 29, 2024, Islamic State-Khorasan Province (IS-KP) terrorists attacked the Shia Imam Zaman Mosque in the Andisheh town of Guzra District in Herat Province, killing seven worshippers, including the prayer leader of the mosque, two women and a child. The attack took place during the evening (between Maghrib and Isha) prayers. Iran’s Embassy in Kabul strongly […]

Recently, both the US and Vietnam have raised concerns about Cambodia’s Funan Techo Canal project, a water route connecting the Phnom Penh Autonomous Port to its coastal province of Kep. Besides environmental worries, there is apprehension about the canal locks being used to adjust water levels for the benefit of accommodating a “Chinese military presence in Cambodian territory” next to […]

Almost two months after ties between the two neighbours plummeted to a new low, the President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ebrahim Raisi, was in Pakistan for a three-day trip. From 22-24 April, he met his Pakistani counterpart along with meeting the Prime Minister, the Chief of Army Staff, and Pakistan’s provincial leadership. The timing of this visit is […]

First it was the Ream Naval Base. Now it’s the Techo Funan Canal. Could the planned $1.7-billion waterway that will cut through eastern Cambodia – which will be built, funded and owned by a Chinese state firm – be used by Beijing to attack or threaten Vietnam? Phnom Penh denies this and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet reportedly had to […]

Nepal’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha was in China from 24 March to 1 April 2024 on an official trip upon the invitation of his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi. Since becoming foreign minister after the change in coalition and formation of a new government in Nepal less than a month ago, this was Shrestha’s first foreign […]

On April 28, 2024, two cadres of the Kuki-Chin National Front (KCNF) were killed during a raid by Army personnel in the remote Baklai Para area in the Ruma Upazila (Sub-District) of the Bandarban District of Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT). Three firearms, ammunition, and a walkie-talkie used by the armed group were recovered. On April 22, 2024, a KCNF operative […]

On April 29, 2024, Islamic State-Khorasan Province (IS-KP) terrorists attacked the Shia Imam Zaman Mosque in the Andisheh town of Guzra District in Herat Province, killing seven worshippers, including the prayer leader of the mosque, two women and a child. The attack took place during the evening (between Maghrib and Isha) prayers. Iran’s Embassy in Kabul strongly condemned the attack. […]

The war in Gaza, now well past the half-year mark with few signs of a long-term resolution, has been an interesting case study to follow from the point of view of the Taliban’s ‘acting’ Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA). The Taliban took over Kabul in August 2021, almost four years ago, and has since managed to develop a patchwork of […]