The protests that erupted across Pakistan after the Sunni extremist group Lashkar-e Jhangvi carried out a deadly bomb attack on February 16 against members of the Shi'ite Hazara minority in Balochistan Province have abated. But the weekend attack, coming just weeks after Islamabad imposed federal rule on Balochistan after twin bombings killed more than 100 Hazaras, has highlighted local factions who are now part of a larger battle for supremacy in Pakistan. RFE/RL's experts offer insight.
# After enjoying a peaceful existence in southwestern Pakistan for more than a century, a tiny Shi'ite community finds itself caught up in a broader regional conflict. Correspondent Abubakar Siddique profiles Quetta's Hazara community.
# In another report, Siddique explains how Pakistan's inability to stop the hardline Sunni faction from systematically killing Shi'a has put its determination to act in question.
# Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri, the religious scholar known for his 600-page fatwa condemning terrorism in 2010, has become a household name in Pakistan and is particularly well known among those who watch the country's 24-hour private television channels and frequent social-media networks. But many Pakistanis are suspicious of Qadri's show of power, which they believe is backed by the country’s strong security establishment. Senior editor Daud Khattak has analysis of this man of contradictions. (See also Khattak's piece in the CTC Sentinel on Lashkar-e Jhangvi leader Malik Ishaq.)
Read more news from Pakistan online and via the Gandhara blog. For breaking news in all RFE/RL broadcast regions visit our website or follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
# After enjoying a peaceful existence in southwestern Pakistan for more than a century, a tiny Shi'ite community finds itself caught up in a broader regional conflict. Correspondent Abubakar Siddique profiles Quetta's Hazara community.
# In another report, Siddique explains how Pakistan's inability to stop the hardline Sunni faction from systematically killing Shi'a has put its determination to act in question.
# Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri, the religious scholar known for his 600-page fatwa condemning terrorism in 2010, has become a household name in Pakistan and is particularly well known among those who watch the country's 24-hour private television channels and frequent social-media networks. But many Pakistanis are suspicious of Qadri's show of power, which they believe is backed by the country’s strong security establishment. Senior editor Daud Khattak has analysis of this man of contradictions. (See also Khattak's piece in the CTC Sentinel on Lashkar-e Jhangvi leader Malik Ishaq.)
Read more news from Pakistan online and via the Gandhara blog. For breaking news in all RFE/RL broadcast regions visit our website or follow us on Twitter and Facebook.