THERE is a war in the neighbourhood and Pakistan is playing the role of the mediator, trying to convince two old foes to smoke the peace pipe and let bygones be bygones. Old habits die hard, however, and the negotiations between distrustful enemies are fraught with tension. This makes it more difficult for those holding the pipe, ie, the inhabitants of Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

Hence, everyone in Pakistan and elsewhere watches, with the world on the edge of a war and economic disaster. And with world peace at stake, domestic affairs too are at a standstill, even forgotten. Who has time to remember Imran Khan or his wife who continue to be held incommunicado, or other prisoners who too have invoked the wrath of the powerful? No one is now even keeping count of how long it has been since Khan hasn’t been allowed to meet his family.

In other words, domestic politics is dead. Indeed, political parties seem so 2025, a style that is not going to return to centre stage soon. This year is all about wars, alliances and oil prices while politicians and political parties are a thing of the past, much like skinny jeans. But if old habits die hard for the Iranians and the Americans, they are equally hard to shed for us ancient hacks, who can do little but keep an eye on politics.

So while the Iranian and American journalists were discovering Islamabad and the media centre, chasing what went down at Serena Hotel, it was hard to miss that the hosts over that busy weekend were the........

© Dawn