Shankar Lal, at age 63, wants to reclaim his native "House of Love" after living in exile in India for 20 years.
The Hindu patriarch is from Prem Nagar, Hindi for House of Love, a once-prosperous Hindu village in southeastern Afghanistan that over the years has been absorbed by the neighboring city of Khost.
Afghans are putting their anger over Pakistani policies regarding their country on full display.
Protests have been staged by Afghan youths objecting to statements made by Pakistani public figures. And Afghanistan's media and civil society have moved to the forefront to resist perceived efforts by their eastern neighbor to fill the vacuum as the West looks to exit their country.
QUETTA, Pakistan -- A deadly attack in southwest Pakistan has added to the heavy toll suffered by a small Shi'ite minority amid a broad sectarian conflict.
Sheikh Janzada has reason to celebrate. Political and judicial reforms have finally come to his mountainous village in Bajauar Agency, part of Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), realizing a lifelong dream.
Muhammad Akram Afridi witnessed a transformation during his 28 years in the Pakistani military.
The retired colonel can remember when British imperial forces were emulated to the point that bagpipes, ballrooms, and whiskey went hand in hand with military service. At 64, he can recall when garrison bars were wet, and when they went dry.
It has been a turbulent month for the Pakistani military.
First came the May 2 killing of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, on Pakistani soil, by American commandos. The raid led to questions of how the Al-Qaeda leader could find a safe haven alongside Pakistan's elite military training academy, and how such a raid could be successfully carried out unbeknownst to the armed forces.
Lack of trust is emerging as the No. 1 problem as Afghan President Hamid Karzai pushes for a national reconciliation with the Taliban.
Faced with increased international military operations, Taliban elements appear to be extremely skeptical of the peace overtures that Afghan and international officials have made to entice the insurgents into negotiations.
Afghans are grappling with rising fuel prices and dwindling supplies in the depth of winter, while convoys of relief aid stand idle just across the border with Iran.
Afghan and international forces missed their mark in the hunt for a senior leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) in northern Afghanistan's Konduz Province last week, but they didn't go home empty-handed.
