Political temperature in #Pakistan reaches unprecedented levels under embattled Prime Minister #ImranKhan. Deposed ex-PM releases a video holding army chief and two top spy officers responsible if anything happens to his daughter-politician @MaryamNSharif. /1
"You know your time is up. You know that it is over for you," @MaryamNSharif to PM @ImranKhanPTI. Maryam paints a scary picture of how the PM allegedly forced his #PTI lawmakers to vote for him, claiming he forced spy agencies to use dirty tactics. /2
Pakistanis were treated to a real feel of spy games yesterday as two senior lawmakers from the two largest opposition parties @pmln_org & @PPP_Org released pictures of alleged spy cameras inside @SenatePakistan supposedly installed by the govt to catch its turncoat lawmakers. /3
Now the ultimate sign of political trouble: PM #ImranKhan's best lines are being used against him--like his signature "Ghabrana Nai'Ae" (Don't get panicked; his regular advice to Pakistanis worried about bad economy & governance)./4
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More from @_AhmedQuraishi

13 Mar
#Chabahar port in #Iran, with #India's investment, is a strange story. President #Trump reluctantly excluded it from #US sanctions, and it is the only #Indian-run port #Pakistan signed a sister-city agreement with. Some interesting updates. /1
#Trump was not sympathetic to #India's case on sanctions waivers for #Chabahar & the crude oil imports from #Iran, but he relented on the port only after pressure from #US diplomats, who said even #Pakistan did not object to the #Indian-#Iranian port. /2

indianexpress.com/article/india/…
Iran spent years convincing #China & #Pakistan not to develop #Gwadar, instead reroute the economic corridor #CPEC to #Chabahar citing better security in #Iran compared to #Pakistan & its #Balochistan province. A top Iranian diplomat explains this: /3

Read 8 tweets
5 Mar
A consecutive third 'Night of the Knives' in #Pakistan's capital, #Islamabad. The city truly outdoes itself in ruthless politics as a cornered & paranoid PM Imran Khan fights for political survival, scared of his own shadow & party, #PTI, which he built but can't trust now. /1
A cornered Prime Minister Imran Khan is now so paranoid & suspicious of his own party that he banned his lawmakers from leaving the city, forced them to have breakfast with him first thing today, & warned them in a letter published by opposition leader!/2

So bad is #PTI's ability to defend its prime minister on the eve of a vote of confidence in Parliament that opposition leader Maryam Nawaz Sharif embarrasses the PM by publishing an internal party letter that reeks of paranoia. Better media management could have preempted this./3
Read 9 tweets
4 Mar
Embattled PM Imran Khan hints he might lose office in a disjointed live address to the nation where he digressed into a long lecture on poverty+corruption & linked a rebellion against him within the ruling #PTI to a heroic struggle for #Pakistan's future/1
Imran Khan appeared incoherent and angry, blamed opposition politicians for a rebellion targeting him personally from within his #PTI party. He offered little details on this conspiracy, vowed to resist whether he remains in power or not. /2
Imran Khan's TV address came as his govt moved a #VoteOfConfidence in Parliament from today to Saturday as chatter increased that he's unsure of the situation, has asked his aides to do the homework to avoid surprises, & likely banned party lawmakers front leaving the capital./3
Read 6 tweets
3 Mar
Meanwhile, in #Pakistan, the capital #Islamabad undergoes a Night of the Knives, with conspiracie, boxes of cash exchanged, daggers out, as Prime Minister Imran Khan fights for political survival in today's #SenateElections2021. A SC judge on record: "We're living in a gutter!"/1
Basically, the run-up to #SenateElections2021 exposed PM Khan govt's weaknesses. He spent the last 48 hours scurrying around to secure his base of lawmakers with intelligence reports suggesting some sort of a mini-rebellion. So he moved fast. /2
A war of leaked videos ensued (vote-buying deal making). The viral clips embarrassed opponents but also deterred shady #PTI lawmakers. Khan's party even struck secret deals with political enemies to adjust seats, where possible. /3

#SenateElections2021
Read 8 tweets
2 Mar
Today, #Israel🇮🇱 has more #Arab allies than #Turkey🇹🇷 or #Iran🇮🇷. Premature to write off moderate Arabs. That could be what #Obama administration wanted by supporting extremist takeover in Middle East. The opposite has happened. Now there is a push back. Israel & Arabs favor it.
Erdogan's charisma, Islamist allies, & Turkey's soft power make him a key player. Iran's expansionism is based on weaponizing non-Iranian Shia communities. Both examples represent forms of religious extremism. Israel & Gulf offer a new model for the future of the Middle East.
#Turkey is a #NATO ally, a leading #Muslim success story as long as it steers clear of extremism. Half of #Iran cabinet are #US graduates, but it's model is not attractive in the Middle East, promoted by shady money and guns. A third model is presented by #AbrahamAccords.
Read 5 tweets
21 Feb
Destabilization by #Israel+#SaudiArabia+#UAE in the Middle East is equal to the destabilization by #Iran. Is it?

I listened to @PeterBeinart on @FareedZakaria's show. He used this contrast to justify rejecting the idea of a #JCPOA rethink to include Iran's malign activities. /1
Are #Israel #KSA #UAE destabilizing the Middle East equally to or more than #Iran? This juxtaposition is used by Iran govt and sympathizers who suggest Tehran's wide network of proxies & operations in the region is not unique. Rather, it's normal. /2
Keeping #JCPOA intact is a legitimate goal but not on the basis of a fallacy. Moral and political equivalency that @PeterBeinart suggested [b/w #KSA/#Israel/#UAE and #Iran] is worth discussing. In short bursts, just key points, for the sake of informing. /3
Read 10 tweets

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