Maliha Lodi

Before the war, God be praised, we were very well off.

Now, God be praised that we are alive.

Pakistan's patience has completely run out with the Taliban regime.

You will recall that since the Taliban returned to power almost five years ago, there's been a surge in attacks on Pakistani territory, Pakistani security personnel and civilians by terrorist groups that are residing in Afghanistan.

This is the latest serious escalation in months of hostilities between the two sides.

And there's been a blame game that's been going on.

So Afghanistan's Taliban government says that the ground offensive it launched last night was in response to Pakistan's airstrikes in Afghanistan in February in the in a province close to the border with Pakistan.

Pakistan says it was launching those airstrikes because it believes Afghanistan's Taliban government is supporting and I'm quoting the Pakistani government here, is supporting anti-Pakistan terrorists who are launching attacks in Pakistan, including the deadly attack recently in Islamabad targeting a mosque in which dozens of people were killed.

So this is a blame game that has been going on for several months.

The last serious escalation was in October 2025.

There were attempts to mediate at the time by Qatar and by Turkey.

And while a fragile ceasefire followed, which has been broken, there was no proper agreement between the two sides on ending hostilities.

A song and drums wake up residents of Khan Yunus for their pre-dawn Ramadan breakfast or suhoor.

The Musaharati picks his path around flattened buildings.

Amid their ongoing hardships, this year Palestinians in Gaza are getting a taste of traditional Ramadan festivities.

There are decorations hung among the rubble at communal gatherings to break the daily dawn to dusk fast.

But most people in Gaza remain displaced, living in tents after two years of devastating war.

This Ramadan, Alia Al-Ansari in Gaza City is thinking of her son who was killed and all she's lost.

Our lives changed.

Our food, our clothes, everything in our lives changed.