Understanding Pakistan Beyond the "War on Terror"

Fulbright Scholar in Residence to Speak at Champlain College

Burlington, VT (02/13/2018) — Sadia Mahmood, Ph.D. and Fulbright scholar-in-residence at Champlain College, will discuss how, in the absence of any mainstream narrative and in the face of internal political divides, Pakistan has fought one of the most vital wars of its history.

Her talk, "Understanding Pakistan Beyond the 'War on Terror," will be held Monday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. in the Presentation Room at Champlain College's Roger H. Perry Hall and Welcome Center, 251 South Willard St. in Burlington.

Mahmood will examine how Pakistan launched Operation Zarb-e-Azb in 2014 as a decisive military operation against militant groups in the country's northwestern regions. The goal of this military operation was to rid the country of devastating terrorist attacks. Pro- al-Qaeda groups in Pakistan had successfully been propagating a strong religious narrative, a narrative derived from the holy texts of Islam, to establish the legitimacy of their actions. They divided public opinion by invoking "justice" and an "ideal Islamic polity," weakening the authority of the Pakistani state. It took the Pakistani state an exceptionally long time to achieve a comprehensive consensus and to declare this all-out military operation against the militant groups.

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