Ahmed Rashid

Ahmed Rashid is a Pakistani journalist and best-selling foreign policy author. He writes extensively about Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia.

Early life and education

Rashid was born in 1948 in Rawalpindi. He attended Malvern College in England to begin his studies. Later, he went to Government College Lahore before moving to the United Kingdom. He studied at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, which is part of Cambridge University. This period of education occurred during the late 1960s.

After he graduated, Rashid spent 10 years in the hills of Balochistan. He attempted to organize an uprising against the military dictatorships of Yahya Khan and Ayub Khan. These guerrilla fighting days ended in frustration and defeat. He eventually turned his attention toward writing about his homeland.

Career

Rashid serves as the Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia Correspondent for The Daily Telegraph. He has held this position for more than 20 years. He also worked as a correspondent for the Far Eastern Economic Review. His writing appears in The Wall Street Journal, The Nation, and the Daily Times. He contributes to academic journals and the Post Global segment of The Washington Post.

The author is a frequent guest on international media networks. He appears on CNN and BBC World. He also speaks on many Pakistani TV channels and NPR's Fresh Air. Diplomats in Kabul and Islamabad often seek his advice. Policy makers in Washington and NATO capitals do the same.

His book, Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia, was published in 2000 by Yale University Press. This work became a New York Times bestseller for 5 weeks. It has sold 1.5 million copies since the attacks of September 11, 2001. The book was translated into 22 languages. American analysts used the text extensively following the 9/11 attacks.

Rashid is a vocal critic of the Bush administration regarding the Iraq war. He argued that the administration neglected the Taliban issue. He also charged that former president George W. Bush plagiarized his work when writing memoirs. Some observers described him as a prophet who issued warnings that policy makers ignored.

His published books include several titles on regional stability. He wrote The Resurgence of Central Asia: Islam or Nationalism? in 1994. He also authored Jihad: The Rise of Militant Islam in Central Asia in 2002. Other works are Descent into Chaos from 2008 and Pakistan on the Brink from 2012.

Personal life

Rashid is married. He has two children. He lives in Lahore, which is located in Punjab, Pakistan.