Category Archives: Blog

Dr Farooq Yousaf Following its territorial losses in Iraq and Syria and in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has led to tighter territorial, border and air controls, the Islamic State may seek to use unconventional methods for its radicalisation and recruitment drives. Two such methods are stepping up its online presence and propagandaContinue reading “Covid-19 and the threat from Islamic State’s online and ‘family’ networks”

Yousaf, F. (2020). Islamic State and Kin Terrorism in the Post-COVID-19 South Asia: Exploring the Possibilities and Implications. Counter Terrorist Trends and Analyses. 12(5). 21-25 URL: https://www.rsis.edu.sg/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CTTA-September-2020.pdf Synopsis:Since territorial and organisational setbacks in Iraq and Syria, coupled with improvements in financial and border controls, the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group is employing unconventional strategies toContinue reading “[Publication] Islamic State and Kin Terrorism in the Post-COVID-19 South Asia: Exploring the Possibilities and Implications”

1st Edition Pakistan, Regional Security and Conflict Resolution: The Pashtun ‘Tribal’ Areas By Farooq Yousaf (Copyright Year 2021) This book shows how colonial legacies and the postcolonial state of Pakistan negatively influenced the socio-political and cultural dynamics and the security situation in Pakistan’s Pashtun ‘tribal’ areas, formerly known as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). ItContinue reading “My Book with Routledge: Pakistan, Regional Security and Conflict Resolution”

Dr Farooq Yousaf In what came as a major shock to the global community, American President Donald Trump, earlier this week, announced that he is suspending American funding to the World Health Organisation (WHO). The United States (US) president was critical of the WHO’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, arguing that the body “failed in its basicContinue reading “How will Trump’s halting of WHO funding impact global COVID-19 response?”

IBM Data Science Capstone Choosing the Best Cities for Middle Eastern Eateries in Australia: An exploratory analysis of Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane and Perth Farooq Yousaf In this capstone project, I used my overall learning from IBM’s Professional Data Science Certificate to solve a problem that I often encountered while living in Australia. Moreover, itContinue reading “Using my IBM Data Science Skills: Choosing the Best Cities for Middle Eastern Eateries in Australia”

Dr Farooq Yousaf [1] The confusion surrounding the PTI Government in terms of dealing with the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is also denting the party’s, especially PM Imran Khan’s, perception on social media. The three major stakeholders currently under discussion on the social media in terms of COVID-19 outbreak include the Sindh Government, the PTI GovernmentContinue reading “Sentiment Analysis of Pakistani Twitter: #SindhGovt. and #DGISPR leading with “positive sentiments””

Within a matter of weeks, the novel coronavirus – which came in the global limelight after spreading in China’s Hubei province and resulted in lockdowns in the country – has created major risks for global economy and public health. On December 31, 2019, China had alerted the World Health Organization (WHO) of “several flu-like cases”Continue reading “COVID-19 outbreak, terrorism and regional peace – Farooq Yousaf”

Originally Published at East Asia Forum At the conclusion of the recent BRICS summit, observers were surprised to see the BRICS nations issue a unanimous declaration indirectly chiding Pakistan and asking Islamabad to take concerted action against militant and extremist groups. This move came as a surprise following the recent alignment of China and Russia with Pakistan onContinue reading “Pakistan’s counter-extremism narrative called into question – Farooq Yousaf”