Essays & Policy Papers

What is happening in Pakistan? Why its happening the way it is happening and how can Pakistan change and become a genuinely democratic polity? Why politicians, educated middle classes and even intellectuals look towards the army to bring a...
Scotland Yard, the investigative arm of British Police has dropped all charges related to money laundering against MQM leader Altaf Hussain. Charges have also been dropped against his party comrades - Mohd Anwar and Sarfaraz Merchant. Details can be...
Pakistanis, Indians and the world at large may disagree on many many things; its almost impossible to count how many, but on one thing, they will all agree: putting Dawn's prominent journalist, Cyril's Almedia's name on Exit Control List...
As I write these lines, in the early hours of 3rd October 2016, initial reports are pouring in of 'yet another fidayeen attack against a garrison' this time in Baramula, not far from Srinagar. Though its only logical to...
When Khurram Rashid, District Police Officer (DPO) of Abottabad, was descending down the winding hilly pathway towards the ill-fated village of 'Maqool Payin' located few kilometers off Donga Gali, he had a sick feeling in his stomach. It looked...
Originally published on Facebook Page, on Fri, 25th March, 2016 Arrest of Raw Agent Kal Boshan Jhadev from Baluchistan! Many of you wonder why our government is shying away from making full disclosure, why not release his video interview, his...
Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog | The terrorists of the so called 'Islamic State' that struck in Brussels on 22nd March have created a crisis for almost everyone. Governments, institutions,  political parties and civil societies all will be transformed one...
Moeed Pirzada | FB Blog | So the argument goes that we can use 'the medium' to send the message across to the world that we are bold enough, strong enough and determined enough to hang a killer; that we have...
Dr. Moeed Pirzada | Kaptaan Times Term “Civil Society” in Pakistan has become an interesting term, and as this article will explain increasingly confusing. Who are those commonly referred in Pakistan as Civil Society and liberals? What is their relation...
Moeed Pirzada | PIQUE Magazine | The past few weeks have not been kind to the politics of Imran Khan. After the high-water mark of APC in the second week of September, where all parties agreed – once again – to...
Moeed Pirzada | Pique Magazine | Few people in Pakistan have been able to fathom why the public protests in Turkey, that erupted in June, spreading from the epicenters of Taksim Square and Gezi Park in Istanbul to more than seventy Turkish...

India and Other Tests

Moeed Pirzada | PIQUE | Nawaz Sharif and his foreign policy team should thank their stars that Afghanistan, and the U.S. withdrawal from there won’t drain their cerebral energies. This has been a front where C.I.A., Pentagon, Obama’s National Security team and...
Moeed Pirzada | PIQUE | On the night of 1st May 2012, US President Barack Obama quietly landed in Afghanistan to conclude a long awaited agreement with President Hamid Karzai. This agreement outlines the nature of US role and engagement in the...
Moeed Pirzada | PIQUE | Though the honourable Supreme Court, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), NADRA and Attorney General of Pakistan are still battling at the tail end of a debate about the right of overseas Pakistanis to vote and the...
PIQUE Magazine | December 2012 Mantras of foreign policy – laced with juicy terms like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iran–may have been mentioned in presidential debates but Barack Obama fought and won his re-elections against Mitt Romney on fault lines quintessentially...