Pakistan
South Asia in a time of the breaking of nations
Avinash Paliwal’s gripping tale of espionage opens in 1949, with newly independent India, Pakistan and Burma racked by rivalries in one of the most intricately partitioned areas on Earth
A fiery examination of the damage wrought by internet culture
Historically, when a woman was giving birth, she was attended by the women she trusted most, including her child’s prospective…
Pakistani democracy is on the brink
A senior official in Pakistan has publicly confessed to vote-rigging in the country’s general election earlier this month. It is…
Hanif Kureishi – portrait of the artist as a young man
Descriptions of the gifted author tearing up the literary landscape of the late 20th century are deeply poignant when set alongside Kureishi’s recent despatches from hospital
A Hindu Cromwell courteously decapitates hundreds of maharajas
Through a mix of charm, diplomacy and coercion, Sardar Patel, Nehru’s uncompromising deputy, ensured that 565 princely states vanished from the map of India in 1947
Has Bazball rescued — or ruined — cricket?
Thanks to Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum, English Test cricket has been revolutionised – at the expense of the gentle, contemplative game
Pakistan is on the brink
On Tuesday I speculated that Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan, now the opposition leader, was so popular that he…
Is Imran Khan Pakistan’s Donald Trump?
Imran Khan, the cricketing hero, legendary lothario and deposed prime minister of Pakistan, is in trouble again. His political opponents…
What next for Imran Khan, Pakistan's ousted leader?
On Sunday, Imran Khan became the first prime minister in Pakistan’s history to be ousted by a no-confidence vote. Followers…
Can Imran Khan cling on to power in Pakistan?
Can Imran Khan cling on to power in Pakistan?
Is this the end of Imran Khan?
Imran Khan’s innings as the Pakistani Prime Minister may be coming to an end. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement, one of…
Ahmad Shah Massoud was Afghanistan’s best hope
Ahmed Shah Massoud was described as ‘the Afghan who won the Cold War’. While famous in France (he was educated…
Pakistan’s masochistic support for the Taliban
Taliban flags are already flying in Islamabad. Among those hoisting the white flag of the group is the women’s madrassa…
Pakistan is the true winner from the Afghan debacle
‘Everyone is getting out – and fast’, the man tells me over a crackling line. He is tired, clearly subdued.…
Pakistan's profane blasphemy laws
An eight-year-old Hindu boy is currently in custody in the southern Punjab. He is the youngest person in Pakistan to…
China is the latest victim of Pakistan's Islamist problem
Nine Chinese engineers were killed in an explosion near Pakistan’s Dasu hydroelectric dam last Wednesday. The government initially said that their…
Death by negligence: why did no one diagnose my sister’s TB?
In 2016, Arifa Akbar’s elder sister, Fauzia, died suddenly in the Royal Free Hospital, London at the age of 45.…
Imran Khan’s dangerous bid to export Pakistan’s blasphemy laws
Imran Khan appears to want to impose Islamic blasphemy laws across the world. ‘I want the Muslim countries to devise…
Imran Khan’s cowardly response to Pakistan's rape crisis
Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan has once again blamed women for an appalling rise in rape cases. Khan used a televised question…
When will Pakistan take a stand against terror?
Last week, Pakistan’s Supreme Court ordered the release of UK born Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh who was accused of kidnapping…
When will Britain take a stand against Pakistan?
Well, now that we’re all fired up about Britain’s moral role in the world courtesy of Theresa May, who is…
Sea change: China has its sights on the Bay of Bengal
China has its sights on the Bay of Bengal
The National Theatre’s live-streaming policy is bizarre
The National’s bizarre livestreaming service continues. On 7 May, for one week only, it released a modern-dress version of Antony…
Islamists are frustrating Pakistan's fight against coronavirus
The number of confirmed Covid-19 cases in Pakistan currently sits at 2,042 alongside 26 deaths. With only limited healthcare facilities, the country…
History will soon judge this fraught time
Good stories have a dénouement. The Act III moment when all is revealed and the narrative comes in to land…
