Our Team

Munizae Jahangir

Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder

Munizae Jahangir is a journalist and documentary filmmaker, and former anchor of Aaj News’ Spotlight with Munizae Jahangir. She has her own You Tube channel Munizae Jahangir Official.
Since 2004 Jahangir has been anchoring and reporting for prominent news media outlets in Pakistan. She has also reported for NDTV as Pakistan correspondent for 10 years, and has reported from Afghanistan, India, Nepal, South Africa, USA, United Kingdom, China, Switzerland and Myanmar. Jahangir’s first award winning documentary Search for Freedom depicted the lives of four women caught in the war in Afghanistan.

Jahangir was honored as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum. She is on the board of AGHS Legal Aid Cell which provides free legal aid to marginalized groups. She is a founding member of South Asian Women in Media, and is Co-Chair of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.

Xari Jalil

Co-Founder/Editor

Xari Jalil is a journalist with over 25 years of experience in journalism. Her award-winning investigative reporting has exposed prison torture and highlighted abuses against marginalised communities, including religious minorities, women, children and victims of enforced disappearances.
Through her journalism and documentaries, she has covered issues ranging from extrajudicial killings and internment centres to gender-based violence, child abuse and the struggles of Afghan refugees. A recipient of an award from the Pakistan Press Foundation and a merit-based fellow of the Global Investigative Journalism Network (GIJN), she has consistently used journalism to expose human-rights violations and amplify the voices of communities often overlooked by mainstream media.

Saroop Ijaz

Lawyer/Member of Working Committee

Saroop Ijaz is a lawyer and human rights activist based in Lahore. He is the senior counsel for Asia at Human Rights Watch (HRW) and a member of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP).
He is also a visiting faculty member at the Lahore University of Management Science (LUMS). Ijaz has researched and written reports and done international and domestic advocacy on issues ranging from the fundamental rights of religious minorities in Pakistan and police reform to Afghan refugees to Pakistanis in prisons in Saudi Arabia – among many other topics. Prior to joining the Human Rights Watch in 2014, he was a consultant and adviser for the European Union, International Commission of Jurists, British Council and various other organizations. He is a regular opinion writer and commentator for several notable Pakistani and international publications including The Los Angeles Times, Guardian, OpenDemocracy, Jurist, Dawn among others.

Arifa Noor

Journalist/Member of Working Committee

Arifa Noor is a journalist with over twenty years of experience, working in various Pakistani publications. She has held senior editorial positions with the Dawn Media Group and currently hosts a current events show for Dawn News.

Ahmed Rashid

Veteran Journalist/Member of Working Committee

Ahmed Rashid is a renowned Pakistani journalist and author whose decades-long reporting on Pakistan, Afghanistan and Central Asia has brought international attention to conflict, militancy, political repression and their impact on civilians. Through works including Taliban and Descent into Chaos, he has challenged prevailing narratives around extremism and regional conflict while advocating for political solutions, democratic governance and peace. His contribution to human rights also extends to strengthening independent journalism: in 2001, he used a portion of his book royalties to establish the Open Media Fund of Afghanistan, which supported the revival of independent media and helped launch newspapers and magazines in Kabul. He has served on the board of the Committee to Protect Journalists, advised Human Rights Watch and the International Committee of the Red Cross, and continues to use his journalism to highlight threats to democracy, civil liberties and peace in the region.

Farzana Ali

Journalist/Consultant Editor

Farzana Ali is a veteran journalist and human-rights reporter who has spent more than 2 decades documenting conflict, terrorism, militarisation and their impact on communities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the wider Pakistan-Afghanistan region. As the first woman bureau chief of a television channel in KP, she broke significant barriers for women journalists while reporting from some of Pakistan’s most dangerous and conservative areas. Her work has given particular attention to women affected by conflict, internally displaced persons, gender-based violence and the experiences of civilians caught in war and militancy. She has also produced documentaries and worked as a trainer and mentor for journalists, advocating for more sensitive and rights-based reporting.

Rashed Rahman

Veteran Journalist/Member of Working Committee

Rashed Rahman is a veteran journalist, editor and left-wing political activist who has spent decades advocating for democracy, social justice, freedom of expression and the rights of marginalised communities in Pakistan. As the former editor of The Post, The Nation and Daily Times, he used journalism as a platform to challenge censorship, authoritarianism and the erosion of democratic freedoms. He has also remained active in progressive political and intellectual circles, addressing issues including civil-military relations, minority and group rights, ethnic and national questions, and social inequality. Rahman currently serves as Director of the Research and Publication Centre and Editor of Pakistan Monthly Review, continuing his engagement with human rights, democratic politics and critical public discourse.

Usama Khilji

Digital Rights Activist/Member of Working Committee

Usama Khilji is Director of Bolo Bhi, board member of the Global Network Initiative, and Member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Systemic Inequality and Social Cohesion. He also writes a column in Dawn, Pakistan.

Khushal Khan

Human rights activist/Member of Working Committee

Khushal Khan has been active in the struggle for democratic and political rights, particularly around the rights of Pashtun communities in Pakistan. As a leader of the National Democratic Movement, he has participated in campaigns and protests concerning civil liberties, political repression, freedom of assembly and the impact of conflict and militarisation on Pashtun society. His activism reflects a broader effort to secure democratic political representation and greater civilian rights in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and beyond.

Our Staff

Xari Jalil

Editor

Rehan Piracha

Output Editor

Ahmed Saeed

Chief Reporter

Muhammad Junaid

Social Media

Farzana Ali

Consultant Editor

Hashir Warraich

Reporter

Aitzaz Ibrahim

Reporter

Ali Baig

Social Media

Our Correspondents

  • Asim Ahmed Khan (Quetta)
  • Nadeem Khan (Quetta)
  • Sher Nadir (Gilgit Baltistan)
  • Shafique Shar (Khairpur)
  • Abdul Baseer Qalandar (Peshawar)
  • Farooq Mehsud (D.I Khan)
  • Fauzia Kulsoom Rana (Islamabad)
  • Syed Taqi-ul-Hasan (Azad Kashmir)
  • Syed Amir Taqvi (Kasur)
  • Shaukat Ali Korai (Karachi)
  • Wali Mohammad (Jacobabad)
  • Ayoob Rajper (Jamshoro)
  • Hidayatullah Achakzai (Chaman)
  • Arshad Mohmand (Ex-FATA Region)
  • Kashif Kokikhel (Khyber)
  • Jamaima Afridi (Khyber District)
  • Adnan Betani (Peshawar)