The Londoner

By Sikander Hayat Pakistan is like Israel, an ideological state. As states that came into existence to protect and promote the interests of religious minorities, Israel and Pakistan have more in common than is generally recognized. Their histories overlapped in many ways. As nations in the making, they had to create identities, impose languages, and contend with strange boundaries. While both have consciously avoided theocracy, in both places an initially reluctant orthodox segment has successfully gained disproportionate power. Pakistan and Israel share the unique heritage of having been created in the aftermath of World War II as religiously defined states. In each case, the new state emerged as the result of a twentieth-century ideological movement, came into existence accompanied by violence, and attracted a large immigrant population. Both met with initial rejection from religious elements who more recently, on second thought, aspired to gain political power. Despite these and man...

Truth cannot be hidden forever and the truth is out. There is further evidence that Indian security establishment is involved in Mumbai terror attacks and all those who have been accusing Pakistan must now apologise and publish the same length of articles to make an apology to Pakistanis as they did to implicate Pakistan. This is the proof if proof was ever required that Indian intelligence services which are sympathetic to the cause of BJP and other right wing Hindu Fundamentalist Parties helped staged the Mumbai attacks. This is just the first information leaking out; eventually the whole plot will become clear (provided that it is not suppressed by the Research & Analysis wing (RAW)). According to the BBC, an Indian Intelligence operative Mukhtar Ahmed provided mobile phone cards to the Mumbai terrorists. This intelligence operative is based in Kashmir and not in Mumbai so the much trumpeted theory of attackers coming from sea is in serious doubt as the mobile Sims were handed...

The money is to be directed at boosting EU programs in the field of education, trade and farming in Pakistan's north-west, a tribal area bordering Afghanistan. "The border area is very important," Ferrero-Waldner said, noting that educational programs were particularly important in a destitute part of the country that is also a breeding-ground for terrorists. Her comments came as EU foreign ministers were meeting in Brussels to discuss ways of enhancing the bloc's ties with Pakistan following the end of emergency rule by ex-president Pervez Musharraf and its slow return to full democracy. Ferrero-Waldner said a free-trade deal will be discussed in 2009. Meanwhile, the EU is about to send a ministerial-level group of diplomats to Islamabad with the aim of boosting political dialogue, officials said prior to Monday's meeting. EU foreign ministers, meeting in Brussels on Monday, were also expected to commit themselves "to intensify political dialogue and deepen ...