Pakistan
Horror Stories in Pakistan
In recent times, both Pakistani cinema and TV have been experimenting with horror, trying to address the complexities of living in modern-day Pakistan, such as the rising discourse about feminism, the fear of Western influences, the evolution of the family system, and the role of religion in everyday life.
America Lags Badly on Gun Laws
As I grew up in Pakistan in the 1980s, gun culture was a big deal, as large a presence in society as it is in America. Guns were to men what jewelry was to women. It took the emergence of a real threat to change Pakistan. Can America similarly adapt?
The Politics of Storytelling — with Fatima Bhutto
Acclaimed Pakistani novelist Fatima Bhutto joins New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai for a wide-ranging conversation about the relationship between politics and fiction. They discuss why she decided to be a writer rather than a politician like her aunt Benazir Bhutto, why the CIA has a department for script writers and why people increasingly identify more with stories from outside the West like “Squid Game” than with “Friends.”
Despite Turkey’s Tough Stance, Afghan Refugees Flood In
People smuggling is big business. According to government officials in Van province, 1,262 smugglers have been arrested in the area this year, the majority of them from Turkey. Now there are fears that the situation for Afghan migrants is nearing a tipping point that will make it harder and more dangerous for new arrivals hoping to get to Europe.
The Special Units Leading the Taliban’s Fight against the Islamic State
The Taliban sensed an opportunity. Eager to win more public support for their insurgency and desperate to prevent the Islamic State from making further inroads into their territory, they decided to escalate the fight against the group.
In Second Regime, Both the Taliban and the World Face a New Reality
Afghanistan itself was a sideshow in which money and careers could be made and repatriated. In the meantime, an artificial economy was created there to service birds of passage, from diplomats and aid workers to military officials and outside contractors.
Taliban, the Next Generation: an Interview with Anas Haqqani
Anas Haqqani, the youngest son of a jihadist commander who fought the Russians and the Americans, tells Newlines that the Taliban has learned from its mistakes. But can the Taliban leave their brutal past behind?