A Fractured Pakistan Fights for Survival

After nine suicide attacks in just eleven days that killed 150 people, including many from the security forces, the Pakistan army has finally started its long-awaited offensive in South Waziristan where the Pakistani Taliban are based.

The success of the offensive, against the backdrop of a serious civil-military division in Pakistan and unresolved debate in Washington, could be critical for the fate of Pakistan, which is financially broke and politically paralyzed.

The army and the civilian government are once more at odds over policy towards the US and India, the insurgency in Baluchistan, and how to deal with militant Punjabi groups who are linked to the Taliban. Moreover, still unresolved and now an issue of growing international concern, is the sanctuary being given to Afghan Taliban in Pakistan.