VIEW: Taliban vis-à-vis the state of Pakistan —Daud Khattak Such is the level of fear among the common people that not a single person from the village, not even the family members of the three abducted whose hands were severed, dared to inform the political administration or any other available state or government agency The Taliban chopped off the hands of three alleged thieves in Orakzai tribal agency last week. Though the horrible episode was reported in the media, the government, as usual, has stayed quiet and apparently ignored this ‘state-within-the-state’ act. Why were these three men amputated and under … Continue reading Taliban vis-à-vis the state of Pakistan

VIEW: Raising the curtain on the burqa —Reem Wasay To impose restrictions and demarcations on the liberal arts is to indirectly avert any attempts at conveying dissent and opposition to the prevailing status quo by the masses, marring the very foundations upon which this nation, any nation for that matter, was created There is a reason there are no go-karts in Afghanistan. Last month’s outlandish Darwin Award goes to a young woman who met quite a bizarre end when her burqa got caught in the wheels of the go-kart she was racing at a recreational park in Sydney, Australia. Death … Continue reading Raising the curtain on the burqa

COMMENT: Iman —Munir Attaullah The details of how we had arrived at this level of intimacy so quickly are not relevant here. Suffice it to say though I am no Richard Gere, years of experience in this field have taught me a trick or two As Shakespeare put it, “There is no art to read the mind’s construction in the face.” Nevertheless, Darwinian Evolution has ensured we are all natural psychologists to some extent. For, as social animals, we both lie and have to be adept at knowing when we are being lied to. Such abilities are an integral part … Continue reading There is no art to read the mind’s construction in the face.

dawn.com Iranian film director Bahman Ghobadi and scriptwriter Hossein Mortezaian Abkenar (L), whose film “Nobody Knows About The Persian Cats” was shown at the Cannes film festival, standing at their office in Tehran.–AFP Photo World Pakistani ambassador attacked, injured in Iran Pakistani ambassador attacked, injured in Iran TEHRAN: Fewer than usual movies from the Middle East are in the front line at Cannes 2010, but the industry is nonetheless booming despite censorship, security and funding concerns in a region constantly grappling with instability. Iran, which can claim one of the region’s most distinguished filmmaking traditions, is represented at Cannes this … Continue reading Violence, censorship define Middle East movie output

Earth may be too hot for humans by 2300 dawn.com NGOs demonstrate during the Climate Summit in Copenhagen. – AFP (File Photo) Front Page Saarc nations to jointly fight climate change Saarc nations to jointly fight climate change SYDNEY: Climate change could make much of the world too hot for human habitation within just three centuries, research released Tuesday showed. Scientists from Australia’s University of New South Wales and Purdue University in the United States found that rising temperatures in some places could mean humans would be unable to adapt or survive. “It would begin to occur with global-mean warming … Continue reading Earth may be too hot for humans by 2300

Court throws out challenge to Mullah Baradar’s extradition Khalid Khwaja, a former ISI officer, had filed a petition in court trying to block Baradar’s extradition. — Photo by AFP Pakistan Former IG Punjab arrested Former IG Punjab arrested LAHORE: A Pakistani court on Tuesday threw out a controversial petition seeking to block the government from extraditing an Afghan Taliban commander in detention, a lawyer said. Pakistan in February arrested Mullah Adbul Ghani Baradar, whom US officials have described as the second in command of the Afghan Taliban. The Afghan government asked Pakistan to extradite Baradar and other Taliban militants they … Continue reading Mullah Baradar – should be sent to US?

Pakistani man arrested at US embassy in Chile dawn.com Police experts found traces of a TNT explosive derivative on the suspect’s hands, cell phone, bag and documentation. — Photo by Reuters Front Page Kayani was not asked to launch new operation: US Kayani was not asked to launch new operation: US SANTIAGO: A Pakistani man will be charged with violating gun control laws in Chile Tuesday after traces of explosives were detected on his body and belongings during a visit to the US embassy, police said. The suspicious substance was detected when the man identified as Mohamed Said Uf Rejaman, … Continue reading Pakistani guy arrested in Chile – apparently he had a matchbox on him!

Facebook and Twitter reflected opinion but there was no defining digital moment guardian uk The chaos at the polling stations was played out on Twitter. Photograph: Sarah Lee Anyone expecting a defining digital moment during this election would have been disappointed. The web doesn’t create moments like that, but reflects them – and the chaos of this election, from Bigotgate to the hung parliament, was echoed across social media. As well as the ubiquitous wisecracks, Twitter suits fast-breaking news snaps and statistics and so works well on results night. The story of the evening was the shambles at polling stations … Continue reading Parties did not make the best of social networking in this general election

When Islamic atheism thrived It’s astonishing to read about the freedom of expression afforded to Muslims in the 10th century, in contrast to our own times Amira Nowaira guardian.co.uk Freethinking is perhaps not one of the strongest suits of modern Islam. For one thing, the list of books that have been banned for challenging prevalent religious orthodoxies and sensibilities during the past hundred years is disconcertingly long. Modern Islamic clerics and scholars in various Muslim countries are often highly selective of which part of the Islamic heritage to emphasise and bring to light. Out of the countless and varied sources … Continue reading Freedom of Muslims in the 10th century, in contrast to today