The Meticulously Crafted Trap by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal The situation in the Gulf has grown steadily clearer of late, and with it the realisation that neither Israel nor its principal patron, the United States, can secure their wider aims unless Saudi Arabia is at length brought into line. Direct persuasion having failed to draw Riyadh into recognition of the Abraham Accords, both parties appear to have resorted to more circuitous means of tightening the noose. What once seemed a confused picture of regional tension now reveals a deliberate design intended…
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Indus Waters Treaty: 66 Years of Stability and Water Security
66 Years of Stability Undone by Unilateral Abeyance By Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal Water is the essence of life, and it is through its presence that the world achieves prosperity and progress. Nature has provided numerous sources of water; while vast reserves exist underground, rivers—whose courses were charted by nature itself—remain the most vital source. Securing river water was a challenge for Pakistan from the very beginning, as India frequently attempted to obstruct the flow of these natural waterways. To resolve this issue, the Indus Waters Treaty was signed between Pakistan…
Read MorePolitics of Possession: Hawaii, Oil and the Long Shadow of Expansionism
Politics of Possession by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal There are certain facts buried deep within the annals of history that have been deliberately veiled, whether from motives of political expediency or to shield the interests of powerful parties, under such dense accumulations of silence that even the most diligent searcher after truth might labour long without bringing them fully to light. Yet time, that relentless uncoverer of hidden things, will not forever suffer such concealments to endure. Beneath these obscured realities often lie the misdeeds of individuals or of states—acts that…
Read MoreSexual Violence in Pakistan: Justice, Protection and Accountability
A Response Awaited by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal I am only a young girl. My name may never appear in a newspaper, my photograph may never be shown on television, and perhaps no one beyond my family will ever know what happened to me. Yet something happened that has changed the meaning of every tomorrow. A crime was committed against my body, but everyone now seems to be asking questions about my character, my clothes, my movements, my friendships, my silence and my future. I therefore ask one question—not only of…
Read MoreQuaid-e-Azam’s Legacy: The Lamp That Still Shines for Pakistan
The lamp that continued to shine after being extinguished by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal Some deaths merely close the chapter of a life. Others transform an entire existence into an everlasting trust. The passing of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah on 11 September 1948 belonged to that rarer, more solemn kind. On that day Pakistan did not simply lose its first Governor-General; it lost the man of iron whose vision, resolve and political wisdom had turned an impossible dream into living reality. Yet the Quaid’s departure was not the end of his…
Read MoreNew Provinces in Pakistan: History, Hopes and Hazards of Division
Beyond the Four Provinces: History, Hopes and Hazards of Further Division by Muhamad Mohsin Iqbal Pakistan’s debate on the formation of new provinces continues to surface with renewed vigour, driven by the practical difficulties of governing a nation whose population now exceeds two hundred and forty million within an administrative framework that has remained largely unchanged since 1970. At present the country comprises four provinces—Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan—alongside the Islamabad Capital Territory and the territories of Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir. Calls for additional units, whether limited…
Read MoreKhatm-e-Nabuwwat: The Blood of Faith and Legacy of Sacrifice
The Blood of Faith and the Legacy of Khatm-e-Nabuwwat (PBUH) by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal In the long and luminous history of divine revelation, the Almighty began the sacred office of prophethood with Adam, peace be upon him, and brought it to its final perfection in Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. The Holy Quran bears unequivocal testimony to this eternal truth. In words of majestic clarity, Almighty Allah declares in Surah Al-Ahzab: مَا كَانَ مُحَمَّدٌ أَبَا أَحَدٍ مِّن رِّجَالِكُمْ وَلَـٰكِن رَّسُولَ اللَّهِ وَخَاتَمَ النَّبِيِّينَ ۗ…
Read MoreThe Living Spirit of September 1965: Unity, Sacrifice and Pakistan’s Future
The Living Spirit of September 1965 by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal There are victories that end when the guns fall silent, and others that continue to shape a nation’s conscience long after the battlefield has faded from view. The triumph of September 1965 belongs firmly to the latter category. It was never merely a military encounter. It was the moment Pakistan discovered the depth of its own resolve—when faith became courage, courage became sacrifice, and sacrifice forged an unbreakable bond between the people and their land. History repeatedly shows that material…
Read MoreForeign-Born Wives of Pakistan’s Political Leaders: A Historical Look
Foreign-Born Companions of Pakistan’s Political Leaders by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal Politics is generally regarded as a realm in which national interests, public responsibilities and political traditions dominate almost every aspect of a leader’s life. Yet the personal lives of political leaders sometimes reveal a fascinating dimension of history that lies beyond parliaments, elections and governments. Pakistan’s political history provides several remarkable examples of prominent leaders whose lives were closely connected with women born outside the country or belonging to foreign nationalities. From the early years of the Sub-Continent to contemporary…
Read MoreWhen the Mountains Weep: Nepal’s Glacial Flood and a Warning for South Asia
When the Mountains Weep By Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal Hollywood is second to none in producing films of action, suspense and catastrophe. Through the marvels of modern technology, filmmakers portray storms, earthquakes, floods and destruction with such astonishing realism that the human mind is often left bewildered. The scenes appear so extraordinary that one is inclined to believe that they belong only to the realm of imagination. Yet there are moments in history when reality surpasses fiction, and nature unveils a spectacle of devastation that no camera, no scriptwriter and no…
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