Interesting footnote to the Khyber Agency raid that netted an alleged al Qaeda figure.  BBC Urdu reports that locals claim two American commandos arrived on the scene in a tinted window vehicle to observe the operation.  Also, a U.S. Predator/Reaper drone flew over the area.  Pakistani government sources did not confirm or deny the reports. The [...]

Barack Hussein Obama becomes the 44th president of the United States today, marking the end of the Bush administration and the beginning of a new era in American politics.  Among those hopeful for change appears to be Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff Gen. Ashfaq Kayani.     For the second time this month, Gen. Kayani [...]

In his first display of real authority, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has sacked National Security Adviser Mahmud Ali Durrani.  The move will improve Gilani’s public opinion standing, but it will be a fleeting show of strength.  The prime minister is unlikely to be politically empowered.  In fact, his relationship with President Asif Ali Zardari [...]

All is not well between President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.   In resisting the complete domination of Zardari, the man from Multan has signalled that he is a vertebrate.  That surprised Zardari, who for prime minister simply sought a backboneless ball of fat with a mustached face.   Tensions between [...]