As the temperature rises ever more perilously under the cauldron of Pakistan’s political crisis, a nuclear-armed Muslim nation bordering Afghanistan and Iran, the West is urgently pondering what ingredients it might stir in to keep the dangerous pot from boiling over. After all, Pakistan’s combustible mix could leave third-degree burns far, far beyond its borders. Now that Pakistan’s dictator, its president and military chief, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, has declared a state of emergency there, this new crisis could easily spread. It does not take a prophet of doom to envision truly disastrous consequences. The choices for Washington and its allies [...]
NEW DELHI – In a dusty alley on the fringe of the capital, a group of 30 women stared at the ground in plaintive silence. They formed a circle around Omwati Kishore, whose grief choked the air as she waited for her husband to return with the cremated remains of her youngest son. Over the weekend, 10-year-old Tushar and his cousin were returning from school on the back of a motorcycle since the van that normally ferried them was broken down. Their driver lost control when a rogue bus hit the bike; the boy fell into its path. “My son [...]
Patterns of a resurgence in cooperation between Islamic extremists and radical communists — faint in some places, more pronounced in others — are emerging. While much of the current focus is on parts of Europe, South Asia could emerge as the principal arena for a communist-jihadist alliance. Depending on whom you talk to, an alliance between Islamic extremists and radical communists is either more sinister war-on-terror hyperbole or a clear and present danger. At the most basic level, the two groups are divided by their outlook on the supreme being. For Islamist extremists, killing in the name of and dying [...]
