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The Pulse
South Asia is a story of promise and peril where Asia’s conflicting forces of modernity and reaction meet head on. Home to a multitude of different cultures, ethnicities, and religions, The Diplomat's regional correspondents and experts will provide the insight you need to navigate one of the world's most consequential regions.
Nawaz Sharif Returns to Pakistan: The Army Playing a Safe Bet?
By Rishi Gupta
The army seems to have given a green signal to Nawaz Sharif to become the face of forthcoming general elections in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s Imran Khan Could Face Death Sentence in Trial Over Revealing State Secrets
By Munir Ahmed
The case relates to Khan's waving of a confidential diplomatic letter at a rally after his ouster in a no-confidence vote in parliament in 2022.
Canada Removes 41 Diplomats From India After New Delhi Threatens to Revoke Their Immunity
By Rob Gillies
41 of Canada’s 62 diplomats in India have been removed in the latest escalation of the dispute over the slaying of a Sikh separatist in Canada.
India’s Digital Footprint on the Israel-Gaza War
By Antara Chakraborthy and Yasmine Wong
Pro-Israel content – including disinformation – is being widely shared on social media by Indian nationals, more significantly by right-wing Hindu nationalists.
Is Sri Lanka’s Wickremesinghe Pivoting to China?
By Rathindra Kuruwita
A deal with Huawei Technologies, which is blacklisted in the United States, is unlikely to please the Americans.
Saad Hussain Rizvi’s Soaring Popularity and Pakistan’s Elections
By Abdul Basit
The Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan chief may be the country's second most popular leader, but his party will likely get just 4 percent of votes, according to a Gallup Pakistan survey.
As Israel Bombards Gaza, Where Is India, the ‘Voice of the Global South’?
By Muqtedar Khan
By standing with Israel, India has laid bare its fear of being excluded from the cool clubs of the Global North.
Pakistan Court Grants Ex-PM Nawaz Sharif Protection From Arrest – For a Time
By Munir Ahmed
The ruling paves the way for Sharif to return home after four years of self-exile in the United Kingdom.
What is Driving China-Bangladesh Bonhomie?
By Mubashar Hasan
Unlike the U.S., China is making no demands on PM Hasina to ensure that elections are free and fair.
India’s Supreme Court Refuses to Legalize Same-sex Marriage
By Krutika Pathi
It is up to Parliament to decide whether it should expand marriage laws to same-sex unions, the apex court said.
New Maldives President: India’s Friend or Foe?
By Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan
It likely that Malé will remain sensitive to India’s broad strategic concerns around China, but will likely push also for closer ties to Beijing.
Caste Census in India’s Kerala State Could Boomerang Against the Congress Party
By A. Harikumar
Other Backward Classes among Hindus in the state fear that the census could trigger Muslim demands for larger quotas for the community.