A large demonstration against Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif is set to take place on the country’s Independence Day, and troops are patrolling the streets.

Imran Khan is looking to shed his “Taliban Khan” image by softening his pro-negotiation stance and rebranding his party as a “liberal, nationalist party.” Will it work?

After years of calling for peace talks with the Taliban, Pakistan’s Imran Khan is turning down an offer to lead the negotiations. Is Khan trying to distance himself from talks that could be doomed to failure?

Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif declared (once again) that the government is ready to hold peace talks with the Taliban, apparently putting an end to weeks of speculation about a military operation against militants in Pakistan’s tribal areas. Is this Imran Khan’s moment to shine?

Known as Taliban Khan by his detractors, Imran Khan, the cricketer-turned-politician, has been the most vocal supporter of dialogue between the state and the Taliban to end an insurgency that has so far cost upwards of 50,000 lives. His insistence on negotiations has made him look desperate and weak as the Taliban continue to wreak havoc across the country, killing 40 people in separate bomb attacks over this weekend alone.

After the provincial government bluntly refused to partake or even endorse Imran Khan’s anti-drone protests, his party resorted to thuggery and sabotage to make sure that crucial NATO supplies both to and from Afghanistan are halted in their tracks. If his objective was to block NATO supplies, then yes, he can call it a success, but it has come at a tremendous cost not only to slowly improving Pak-American relations, but Khan’s own political ambitions.