Historically, football has been used as a lens through which political anger, identity, and resistance come into focus. From Mohun Bagan to Didier Drogba’s Ivory Coast, this claim can be easily cemented.
The 2025 election reveals a crisis deeper than disillusionment. Iraq’s problem is the internalised belief that nothing will ever change. Psychologists call this state ‘learned helplessness’.
For India, the strategic ripples are significant. The immediate concern is Pakistan’s diplomatic gain as it embeds itself deeper into the defence framework of the Middle East.
Iranian armed forces target Al-Udeid Airbase in Qatar. US air defence system is reported to have been activated at Ain Al-Assad Airbase in Western Iraq as well.
Death sentences were used in some Middle East countries to silence human rights defenders, dissidents, protesters, political opponents & ethnic minorities, Amnesty report adds.
Move follows warnings issued privately by US officials since Trump came to power, according to Reuters. Groups fear American airstrikes & now have Revolutionary Guard's blessing to disband.
Critics say bill will enshrine sectarianism in relationships, give power to clerics, and push Iraq toward religious patriarchy. A blow to women, children's rights, say rights groups.
Since the bulk of citizens did not regard drinking as a crime, they had no respect for the prohibition laws and did not cooperate with the police, wrote MV Venkata Rao in 1962.
We now live in a world order that will keep shifting. India must use this window. This also means we remain disciplined enough not to be knee-jerked into reacting to what Pakistan sees as its moment in the sun.
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