Pakistan’s Ethnic Fault Line

Key to keeping Pakistan stable is understanding its ethnic conflicts.

The Pakistani army is composed mostly of Punjabis. The Taliban is entirely Pashtun. For centuries, Pashtuns living in the mountainous borderlands of Pakistan and Afghanistan have fought to keep out invading Punjabi plainsmen. So sending Punjabi soldiers into Pashtun territory to fight jihadists pushes the country ever closer to an ethnically defined civil war, strengthening Pashtun sentiment for an independent "Pashtunistan" that would embrace 41 million ... Full Story »

Posted by Kaizar Campwala

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Kaizar Campwala
4.2
by Kaizar Campwala - May. 11, 2009

There's a danger in over-simplifying ethnic divisions, but this piece suggests the U.S. media is beginning to acknowledge the layers of complexity and tension in Pakistan.

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