Remember how the Eiffel Tower was evacuated recently? Plans for a Mumbai-style terror attack on Britain, France, and Germany were intercepted by international intelligence organisations and then foiled by missile drones on Pakistan militants last week.
Pakistan
USA: now at war with Pakistan?
Officially the US and its international troops in Afghanistan are not fighting a war in Pakistan. But with air strikes launching into Pakistan last week, Pakistan is angry with the cross-border invasion. The Atlantic Wire wraps the latest.
Crikey Says: A blocked toilet? Oh the horror
We had a whole editorial written but then we saw this reader comment on our website, and thought, well, that says it all really…
Flies, famine and floods: meet the hungry family living amongst it
A photo of toddlers with their faces covered in flies, lying on a rug in a makeshift camp has become the “human face” of the Pakistan floods. The Guardian tracks down Reza Khan, the two-year-old drinking from a insect-covered bottle.
Gideon Haigh: Pakistani cricket is corrupt? Duh…
Of course cricket is suffering from massive match-fixing scandals, the maladministration in Pakistan has meant ethics in cricket was a bomb waiting to explode, writes Gideon Haigh.
Pakistan: mass devastation, miniscule global response
The devastation caused by mass floods in Pakistan over the past three weeks is of catastrophic proportion, yet the world has turned a blind eye. Has aid become too commercial, asks Durkhanai Ayubi?
Fears for Pakistan floods: only 20% of UN aid received
Up to 20 million people are currently homeless because of Pakistan’s epic floods, leaving an already politically embattled nation struggling to survive and UN chief Ban Ki-moon pleading for aid from foreign donors.
PHOTO GALLERY: Pakistan, a country submerged
Check out this horrifying photo gallery of Pakistan battling its killer floods, where babies are being passed above rivers and belongings are tied around survivor’s necks.
Tide of devastation washes over Pakistan
The full extent of the damage caused by Pakistan’s devastating floods is slowly becoming apparent, with the UN now estimating that 13.8 million people have been affected by a disaster that has washed away around 300,000 homes.
Worsening toll of Pakistan floods
As Pakistan turns 63 years old in exactly nine days time, its worst floods in 80 years have left up to 3 million souls stranded amid outbreaks of disease after monsoon rains forming floods kill almost 1,500 people. Farrukh Zafar writes from Pakistan.
Over 1,300 dead in Pakistan flooding
Monsoon floods in Pakistan have claimed the lives of over 1,000 people, with more disastrous rain expected in the week ahead and tens of thousands stranded. One of the worst hit areas is the Swat Valley, previously a Taliban stronghold.
Pakistan: the rich getting richer, the poorer getting…poorer
An unworkable tax system in Pakistan is widening the gap between the nation’s wealthiest and poorest, fueling insurgents and complicating US policy in the region, writes Sabrina Tavernise.
America’s Zionist-Hindu alliance and other Pakistani conspiracy theories
A fascinating look at how the US is losing the media war in Pakistan, as popular conspiracy theories continue to flourish: like shadowy thinks tanks planting bombs and the secret ownership of the Federal Reserve.
How America built its robot army
An excellent investigation by Reuters into how drone fighter planes became the Obama administration’s weapon of choice in AfPak. The US military is now launching several targeted strikes a week in Pakistan, four times as many as under Bush.
How to make a bomb: with al-Qaeda
The AfPak Channel has an al-Qaeda propaganda video showing bombmakers assembling IEDs, plus insight from a demolition and pyrotechnics expert into just how much (or little) skill it takes to construct a DIY bomb.
revealed US military running private spy ring in AfPak
The NYT reveals the US is still is running a potentially illegal “rogue operation” of private spies in Afghanistan and Pakistan, employing former CIA agents and Special-Ops soldiers to gather information.
Why assassinating terrorists won’t win the war on terror
Sending targeted missiles into Pakistan to kill individual terrorists isn’t just legally dubious — it’s counterproductive, explains Robert Wright: they’ll just be replaced by newer, angrier terrorists.
Could terrorists actually acquire a nuclear weapon?
It’s the West’s big nightmare: terrorists getting their hands on a nuclear weapon. But could it actually happen? Probably not, explain experts, but if they do, the nuke will probably come from Pakistan or North Korea.
How Pakistan double-crossed the US in Afghanistan
According to US intelligence officials, Pakistan’s intelligence agency has been secretly releasing captured senior Afghani Taliban members right under the American military’s nose.
exposed US running off-the-record private spies in AfPak
A US Defence Dept official has been running an “off-the-books” spy operation in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the NYT reveals, paying former CIA and Special Forces soldiers to track down and kill militants.
Taliban leader captured: an AfPak game changer?
Today’s big news from the AfPak frontlines is that the deputy leader of the Taliban, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, has been captured by American and Pakistani forces. Will this finally bring the Taliban to the negotiating table? asks The Economist.
Is the US at war with Pakistan?
Three American soldiers have been killed in Pakistan, where the US has been launching missile attacks, drone strikes and raids since last year. Can we start using the “w” word yet? asks Noah Shachtman.
Inside the gun markets of Pakistan
Vice journalist Suroosh Alvi visits “the most dangerous place in the world” — a massive open-air gun market in Pakistan’s tribal area, where members of the Taliban and jihadists go to buy their firearms.
Daily Proposition: Get a sneak peek at Pakistan Fashion Week
If getting to Pakistan for fashion week is just too much of a logistical hassle — not enough time/nothing to wear — then tonight we suggest you get a preview of the catwalk action at www.fashioncentral.pk.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: The AfPak conundrum
Crikey readers are up on their soapbox on Afghanistan, Rupert’s paywall and Conroy’s filter.
