It was late evening on 1 March 2026. While surfing through TV channels, it came as a shock to see that GEO TV was displaying a highly inappropriate message against our valiant armed forces. The first instinct was that something might be wrong with the television. But then the same message appeared on ARY and SAMAA News. After some time, GEO News went off air.

The disruptions affected satellite transmission feeds but not newsrooms, websites or social media platforms. Management stated that attempts to breach their broadcasts had been ongoing for about 24 hours before the unauthorised content appeared. So far, no group or individual has claimed responsibility, nor has any public attribution been made.

However, it is important to examine this occurrence in the context of geostrategic developments around Pakistan.

Indian Prime Minister Modi recently visited Israel, where he received a red-carpet welcome and became the only Indian prime minister to address the Knesset. Days before his arrival, Prime Minister Netanyahu announced at a cabinet meeting what he described as a “hexagon of alliances”, a proposed regional framework placing India at its centre alongside Greece, Cyprus and unnamed Arab, African and Asian states. Its declared purpose was to counter what he termed “both the radical Shia axis, which we have struck very hard, and the emerging radical Sunni axis”.

In a region where Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been among Israel’s most outspoken critics, and where Saudi Arabia and Pakistan formalised a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement in September 2025 — all Sunni-majority nations — the outline of what Tel Aviv views as the “Sunni axis” is not difficult to discern.

A review of the........

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