By Shahana Naseer Pakistan has been a major refuge for Afghan refugees, hosting millions over the years. The influx began with over a million Afghans fleeing to Pakistan after the 1979 Soviet invasion, followed by subsequent waves of refugees. Recently, the Taliban's takeover in 2021 led to another wave of migration, with many Afghans seeking refuge in Pakistan due to the Taliban's policies. Pakistan's approach to Afghan refugees evolved from initial hospitality to increasing hostility, fueled by security concerns and geopolitical tensions, especially after the TTP’s attack in Chitral in September 2023. The Pakistani government has intensified its operations to deport foreign nationals residing illegally in the country, with a particular focus on Afghan residents. Afghan migrant deportations occurred in two phases: first, forced deportations of unregistered migrants in 2023, followed by a phase targeting Citizen Card holders, who were required to leave Pakistan by April 1, 2025. International Organization of Migration (IOM) data reveals that, from September 15 2023 to April 2025, 861763 Afghans have returned to Afghanistan. While Pakistan's efforts to document foreigners, including Afghan refugees, are legitimate given its social, economic, and security concerns. However, the current approach also sparks humanitarian crises, with reports of injustice and limited access to fundamental rights. Amid the ongoing deportation drive, concerns have emerged over the separation of family members. In some cases, one family member remains in Pakistan while others are detained or deported. According to a report by Dawn, the son-in-law of a man named Zaeenuddin has been placed in a detention center in Karachi, while his daughter remains outside. Zaeenuddin has appealed to authorities, requesting either the release of his son-in-law or the inclusion of his daughter in the deportation process, so the couple can return to Afghanistan together. Ghulam Hazrat, a 40-year-old Karachi...

By Arshad H Abbasi Is Pakistan’s relentless quest for nuclear capability the unifying thread binding its four provinces and three territories? Perhaps. Yet, as history and human experience whisper through the corridors of time, the truest and most enduring bond lies not in power, but in water. When shared with justice and wisdom, water emerges as a timeless force, weaving together the fabric of a nation with unmatched grace. Nature has generously bestowed upon Pakistan a symphony of interconnected rivers, a gift that transcends the divides of geography. The two main rivers of Balochistan, the Zhob and Kundar, carve their origins from its rugged heart, journeying onward to embrace the Gomal River in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK). Together, they flow toward the mighty Indus, a lifeline threading through Punjab and finally Sindh, where it breathes life into fields and communities. In the intricate choreography of rivers and canals, there lies a profound truth: nature, when nurtured and shared with equity, holds the power to bind the hearts of a nation. In these flowing waters, the spirit of unity finds its most enduring roots. The bond between provinces was further fortified in 1969, with the completion of the Pat Feeder Canal for Balochistan, a triumph that drew life from the Indus at the Guddu Barrage. As the largest irrigation project in Balochistan, the canal transformed the arid lands of Nasirabad and Jafarabad districts. Pakistan's irrigation history shines with this success story, which sparked agricultural prosperity and bridged Baluchistan’s socio-economic gap with the rest of the country, fostering shared growth. Buoyed by this success, the vision of the Kachhi Canal Project was born in 2002—a bold endeavor stretching over 500 kilometers, drawing water from the Taunsa Barrage on the Indus and channeling it deep into Balochistan. Designed to irrigate 720,000 acres of land, nearly triple the reach of the Pat Feeder Canal, this project held the promise of...

By Engineer Arshad H Abbasi The Indus River, ancient and indomitable, courses through the veins of a region steeped in millennia of history and myth, binding what is now Pakistan with a force far greater than any political alliance or nuclear arsenal. It is the sublime river of time, shaping civilizations and eroding the conceits of transient powers. From its formation 50 million years ago to the rise of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro, the Indus has been the silent witness to humanity’s shared destiny, its waters a mirror reflecting the continuity of cultural and linguistic heritage. In Sindh, protests now erupt—leaders of nationalist movements, lawyers, poets, and students join their voices in lamentation over the proposed canals that threaten to distort this primordial lifeline. The Indus is not merely a river; it is the elemental force that connects provinces and peoples, shaping their history as inexorably as it carved its banks. The Water Apportionment Accord of March 21, 1991, an achievement unparalleled since the Indus Waters Treaty, sought to give form and fairness to this divine inheritance. With Punjab accorded 47%, Sindh 42%, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 8%, and Baluchistan 3%, the Accord distilled the essence of historical precedent into pragmatic legislation. It remains a perfect artifact of human intention, unchallenged by any province. Yet, perfection on paper falters in practice, where IRSA—the regulator born to embody the Accord’s spirit—has become the very source of dissonance. The discord lies not in the Accord’s percentages but in the mechanics of its implementation: an arithmetic of error, compiled by a bureaucratic machinery ill-suited to its monumental task. It is here, in the gap between the vision and its execution, that the tragedy unfolds. This is no mere administrative squabble; it is a fracturing of unity, a challenge to the shared identity forged by the Indus over centuries. The Indus flows as it always has, indifferent to the squabbles of those who...

By Elsa Imdad The ever-delicate Pak-Afghan relationship hangs by a thread, with unresolved tensions sparking fears of a deeper regional crisis. The growing tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan are now at a critical point, with the potential for even further destabilisation. Pakistan’s threat to deport over a million Afghan refugees has brought to the forefront the economic and humanitarian strains on Afghanistan’s government, which is already reeling from a lack of international support. Historically, both nations have wielded trade, transit, refugees, and border disputes as political leverage. However, the current impasse is more severe than previous conflicts. Beyond the refugee crisis, Pakistan has persistently voiced concerns over cross-border terrorism emanating from Afghan territory. Islamabad has presented substantial evidence implicating Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISKP), and the Hafez Gul Bahadur group in attacks on Pakistani soil. The numbers bear witness to the deteriorating security situation in Pakistan. According to the Global Terrorism Index 2025, Pakistan experienced a 45% increase in terrorism-related fatalities, with deaths rising from 748 in 2023 to 1,081 in 2024. The TTP was responsible for 558 deaths in 2024, accounting for approximately 52% of the total terrorism-related fatalities in the country that year. ISKP, meanwhile, has expanded its regional footprint, executing increasingly lethal attacks. These groups, entrenched in Afghan territory, continue to launch cross-border assaults, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan. Yet, the Taliban’s unwillingness to rein them in has only deepened Pakistan’s frustration. The Afghan Taliban’s reluctance is rooted in both ideological and strategic considerations. Many of these militant factions were integral to the Taliban’s prolonged insurgency against U.S.-led NATO forces. Confronting them now risks alienating former allies and driving...

By Imtiaz Gul Any conversation on whether and how to improve Indo-Pakistan relations will remain incomplete without a peep back to statements by political stalwarts to grasp the mindset and strategy that PM Narendra Modi and national security advisor Ajit Doval brought with them in 2014, i.e. how to deal with Pakistan. What strategy did they adopt to punish the country seen as the backer of the Kashmir militancy and those who staged the Mumbai attacks? Context India Today (late October 2009) held a round table of security experts under the title BEST (best experts on security and terrorism). Ajit Doval and G. Parthasarthi, a former high commissioner to Pakistan, were among the 12 experts on the session on “how to tackle an obstinate Pakistan.” (https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/cover-story/story/20091109-how-to-tackle-an-obstinate-pakistan-741229-2009-10-28) The security dialogue yielded interesting observations and recommendations. Some of the key points put on the table by Ajit Doval read: We secured Bangladesh and handed over to them to run their own country. So that is one… You can never deal with any obstinate enemy unless you have brought it to your terms… To do that, don’t let either side win. Pakistan is in turmoil, there are two sides to it, their army is seriously engaged, so let it continue. Parthasarthi, considered as a hardliner on Pakistan and China, had the following to say: It (Pakistan) has fault-lines which may be exploited by India as they have to realise that. The fact that Pakistan is having problems in Afghanistan, they are also with Iran. These are things we need to work on. Parthasarthi went on to insist that “Pakistan has to be made to realise that it will pay, not just a diplomatic price (the Kerry Lugar Bill being one manifestation of that)[1] but also a price otherwise   for what it is doing and therefore raising the costs for Pakistan’s covert overt needs to be an essential ingredient of policy.” Another participant, Ved Marwah,...