Articles from the author

Gul Jan Sadiq sits in a small room of a multi-storey building in Peshawar city, trying to rehearse his new song in the Pushto language as his young colleague tries to master the Rubab, a traditional musical instrument similar to the guitar.

Will this man be Pakistan's new prime minister? For Zafarullah Jamali, the man chosen by Pakistan's Muslim League Quaid-e-Azam for his anarchist zeal and revolutionary spirit to lead, the student politics of the 60's held no charm.

Pied Piper to thousands of hardline religious voters who demand a Taliban style government in Pakistan, the 49-year-old Maulana Fazlur Rehman is now a leading contender for the post of prime minister, if the major parties back him as head of the country's new government.

Only a few weeks ago, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) candidate Makhdoom Amin Fahim took off from a brilliant start in a race for the country's new prime minister, and it looked like he would win it by a clear margin.

Clutching her child in one arm and balancing the suitcase on her head with the other, Gulshan wants to cross the deserted street as quickly as possible.

A suicide bomb attack in Karachi which has killed 14 people, is seen as a "deadly escalation in tactics" of terror attacks, linked to possible retaliation from the religious extremists.

For Mohammed Abdullah, his journey to Afghanistan was like a horrible dream, but like many of the hundreds of Pakistani 'jihadis' who are spilling out of Afghan prisons, the welcome mat has worn thin, and they feel a keen sense of betrayal.

Shehnaz Begum sells samosas in a small street of Rawalpindi city. She is just 35 years old, but her grey hair, the dark circles around her eyes and the wrinkles make for an old woman.

Bearded Masih-uz Zaman and his nephews sit in a room of his house located in a labyrinthine Kutcha busti in Peshawar city, the carpets and cushions boasting the family's Afghan heritage.

Aslam alias Hero, a 14-year-old Pakistani boy, has few ambitions in life. He has already chosen his journey, oblivious to the fact that it could kill him in just a few years.

For 11 years, Mufeed Khan was in search of a bright future in America. But his hopes shattered when he was confined for several months and "forcibly" deported by the U.S. immigration authorities.

Not long ago, Amir Wali was a tourist guide in Pakistan's northern mountainous area. But now he is a waiter at a hotel in the capital city of Islamabad, trying hard to earn a life for himself and his family as the visits of foreign tourists have reduced drastically following September 11.