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Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the Sept.

Anatol Lieven is a professor in the department of war studies at King's College London and author of the book Pakistan: A Hard Country. In his book, he talks about some of the realities and mythmaking on Pakistan, which has had a complicated history and society since its 1948 independence.

As the Chicago Tribune's South Asia bureau chief from 2004 to 2009,  Kim Barker witnessed Afghanistan go from Bush’s “Forgotten War” to Obama’s “Good War.” Barker details the transitions in her book The Taliban Shuffle: Strange days in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Bede Sheppard is a senior researcher for Asia in the Children’s Rights Division of Human Rights Watch. He specializes in attacks on schools and teachers; the occupation of schools by security forces; and child domestic workers.

All sports have controversies, but cricket sets a high bar for scandals. Right now, billions of people globally are tuned into the Cricket World Cup, underway in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and India.

Illinois U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk is defending the use of drone strikes in Pakistan.Pakistan reported a U.S. drone attack on Thursday killed about 36 people, who were mostly civilians.

The commander of American and Allied forces in Afghanistan began two days of testimonies before congress today. General David Petraeus called the gains fragile and reversible, but he said the US had stopped the Taliban momentum.