More on: Democracy. Afghanistan. If U.S. commanders do turn to Afghanistan’s tribes-a similar strategy is already being employed by Pakistan in that country’s tribal regions-it would amount to ...

Qari Zia Rahman and a map of northeastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. Map from the Asia Times; click to view. A dangerous, dual-hatted Taliban and al Qaeda commander has kidnapped 21 Afghan ...

QUETTA, Pakistan — It’s ages old and out of sync with most concepts of modernity, but those shaping Afghanistan’s future are betting heavily that the country’s ancient tribal system can be ...

Two Pashtun tribes are helping the governments of Afghanistan and Pakistan to stabilize a stretch of their long border, where recent clashes have left several dead. On April 23, a joint committee of ...

A tribal confederation bearing allegiance to a central authority, perhaps not unlike that which existed during the Afghan monarchy, provides one model to consider. Yet there remain sharp divisions ...

In Afghanistan, a grand assembly of some 2,500 tribal elders, politicians and civil society elites are meeting to decide whether to approve a security agreement with the United States. Approval by ...