The Long Night In Islamabad
Paperback
Armed ForcesInternational Relations
Publisher: Institute of Geo-Strategic Studies
Published: Apr 17 2026
Pages: 272
Weight: 1.04
Height: 0.57 Width: 7.50 Depth: 9.25
Language: English
Book Description
The Long Night in Islamabad: Washington, Tehran, and the War of 2026
A Study in Wartime Diplomacy, Mediation, and the Limits of Coercion
By Dr. Naim Tahir Baig
On the evening of 11 April 2026 - six weeks after the United States and Israel launched the most consequential military operation in the Middle East since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, six weeks after the assassination of Iran's Supreme Leader, and six weeks into a war that had killed more than four thousand people and closed the Strait of Hormuz to global shipping - two delegations walked into the Serena Hotel in Islamabad. They had not met at this level since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. For twenty-one hours, under the mediation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, they tried to stop the war. They did not produce an agreement. They produced something else.
In The Long Night in Islamabad, Dr. Naim Tahir Baig - author of more than 140 international publications and one of Pakistan's most widely cited strategic analysts - offers the first book-length reconstruction of the April 2026 US-Iran talks. Written within days of the events it describes and grounded exclusively in the verifiable public record, the book traces the encounter hour by hour, round by round, and issue by issue: the indirect phase of proximate shuttling, the first direct face-to-face engagement since 1979, and the final collapse over the categorical questions of uranium enrichment and the war in Lebanon.
But this is more than a chronicle of a single weekend. Dr. Baig situates the Long Night within a forty-seven-year inheritance of rupture, near-misses, and broken promises - from the hostage crisis and the JCPOA to the Twelve-Day War of 2025 and the February 2026 strike. He explains why Pakistan, rather than a more traditional mediator, became the unlikely host of the twenty-first century's most consequential US-Iran negotiation. He reconstructs the six battlegrounds at the table - enrichment, the Strait of Hormuz, frozen assets, Lebanon, reparations, and sanctions relief - and shows how five of the six admitted movement, while one proved categorical. And he asks the book's central question: was the failure to sign an agreement the same as the failure of the talks?
His answer is carefully argued and deliberately unromantic. Drawing on Reuters, the Associated Press, the BBC, Al Jazeera, NPR, Axios, the UK House of Commons Library, IAEA communiqués, and the verified statements of the principal actors, Dr. Baig makes the case that the Islamabad Talks opened a channel that survived their collapse - a channel now institutionalised as the Islamabad Process and pursued in parallel through Cairo, Ankara, Doha, and Muscat. The final chapters set out four structured scenarios for the months ahead, from a comprehensive Grand Bargain to the return of open war, and assess the single variable with the most leverage over the trajectory: not the US-Iran exchange itself, but the Israeli posture on Lebanon.
Written with the discipline of a scholar and the urgency of a witness, The Long Night in Islamabad is a work of diplomatic history in a hurry. It is the authoritative record of what happened in twenty-one hours at the Serena Hotel, a field manual for how third-party mediation operates between nuclear-armed adversaries, and an indispensable reference for scholars, policymakers, journalists, and informed readers seeking to understand the most significant US-Iran negotiation in nearly half a century. Above all, it is a meditation on a different kind of victory: one measured not in signing ceremonies, but in the quiet survival of a channel that war could not close.
Also from
Baig, Naim Tahir
Zero-Knowledge Machine Learning (zkML): Revolutionizing Privacy in AI Applications
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Pakistan's Maritime Frontier: Breaking Free from the IMF Through Blue Economy Development
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
2nd Edition: Operation Rising Lion: Israel's Strike Against Iran's Nuclear Program
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Operation Rising Lion 2025: Israel's Strike on Iran's Nuclear Program
Ishaq, Sidra
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Collision Over the Capital: The Untold Story of the 2025 Potomac River Mid-Air Disaster and the Fight for Safer Skies
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Bashar al-Assad's Last Stand: A Study of the Syrian Conflict's Final 11 Days in December 2024
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Widening Political Gap Between Muslim Rulers And Their Masses In The 21st Century
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Selbstgehostete E-Mail-Server: Praxisanleitung für Datenschutz und Unabhängigkeit in Deutschland
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
World War I of Climate Change: Geopolitical Parallels and Emerging Battles
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Last Rock's Secret War: Okinotorishima and Japan's Fight for Tomorrow's Ocean
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Islamic NATO: The Mecca Pact and the Long Search for Muslim Collective Defense
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Echo Chamber Escape: Finding Empathy and Growth Through Conversations That Challenge Us
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Afterlife of Armageddon: The Environmental and Human Legacy of Nuclear Disarmament
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Why Nuclear-Armed Pakistan Has Not Fought a War Against Israel in the 2020s?
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Boomer Blockade: How an Aging Generation is Reshaping Global Power and Economics at Younger Generations' Expense
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Tarifaço: Trump's Tariff Assault on Brazil and the Battle for Hemispheric Power
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Nepal in Turmoil: The 2025 Gen Z Uprising Against Corruption and Censorship
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
TikTok Bans: Navigating the Social and Political Labyrinth in a Digital Age
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Equal and Orderly Multipolarization of the World: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization as a Catalyst
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Kulbhushan Affair: Espionage, Diplomacy, and Justice in the Shadow of South Asian Rivalry
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Youth Awakening in South Asia 2024-2025: Gen Z-Led Movements and the Struggle for Democracy in SAARC Countries
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
From Gaza's Siege to Pakistan's Floods 2025: An Islamic Perspective on Collective Accountability and Calamities
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The Final Attempt to Assassinate Ali Hosseini Khamenei (2026) (Large Print Edition)
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
USA's Miscalculations Before the Iran-USA War (2026) (Large Print Edition)
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Trump's Siege on the Fed: Politics, Power, and the Fracturing of Global Finance
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
The History of Pakistan-Saudi Arabian Defence Treaties: From Friendship to Mutual Security
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Stolen Fortunes: Unraveling Corruption, Economic Communalism, and the Hidden Wealth of Bangladesh's Hasina Era
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
How Wars End: Settlements, Stalemates, and the Politics of the Exit (Large Print Edition)
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Fractured Faith: The Ken Paxton Divorce Scandal and the Crisis of Conservative Authenticity
Baig, Naim Tahir
Paperback
Also in
International Relations
Nonstate Warfare: The Military Methods of Guerillas, Warlords, and Militias
Biddle, Stephen
Hardcover
Wronged by Empire: Post-Imperial Ideology and Foreign Policy in India and China
Miller, Manjari Chatterjee
Paperback
Dawn of the Code War: America's Battle Against Russia, China, and the Rising Global Cyber Threat
Graff, Garrett M.
Carlin, John P.
Paperback
Hostage on the Yangtze: Britain, China, and the Amethyst Crisis of 1949
Murfett, Malcolm H.
Hardcover
100 Deadly Skills: The Seal Operative's Guide to Eluding Pursuers, Evading Capture, and Surviving Any Dangerous Situation
Emerson, Clint
Paperback
Family of Spies: A World War II Story of Nazi Espionage, Betrayal, and the Secret History Behind Pearl Harbor
Kuehn, Christine
Hardcover
The Best Kind of American: A True Story of Murder, War, and America's Undoing in the Middle East
Ghattas, Kim
Hardcover
The Havana Syndrome: Secret Weapons, a Government Cover-Up, and the Greatest Spy Mystery of Our Time
Rey, Michael
Zill de Granados, Oriana
Hardcover
The Kennedys and the Windsors: The Story of Two Dynasties, One Born, One Made
Hallemann, Caroline
Hardcover
The American School of Spies: The Archaeologists Who Fought the Nazis and Saved the Treasures of Ancient Greece
Talty, Stephan
Hardcover
Family of Spies: A World War II Story of Nazi Espionage, Betrayal, and the Secret History Behind Pearl Harbor
Kuehn, Christine
Paperback
Unreliable Boyfriend: An Insider's View of Dealing with a Chaotic Superpower, Plutocrats, and Other Complicated People
Freeland, Chrystia
Hardcover
A Brief History of the World in 47 Borders: Surprising Stories Behind the Lines on Our Maps
Elledge, Jonn
Paperback
A Shadow Over the World: Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Rise of Fascism, and the Making of America's World War II
Hitchcock, William I.
Hardcover
The Nord Stream Conspiracy: The Inside Story of the Explosions That Shook the World
Pancevski, Bojan
Hardcover
Book and Dagger: How Scholars and Librarians Became the Unlikely Spies of World War II
Graham, Elyse
Paperback
Killed to Order: China's Organ Harvesting Industry and the True Nature of America's Biggest Adversary
Jekielek, Jan
Hardcover
Going to Tehran: Why America Must Accept the Islamic Republic of Iran
Leverett, Flynt
Leverett, Hillary Mann
Paperback
Kennedy's Coup: A White House Plot, a Saigon Murder, and America's Descent Into Vietnam
Cheevers, Jack
Hardcover
Bytes and Bullets: Global Rivalries, Big Tech, and the New Shape of Modern Warfare
Feldstein, Steve
Hardcover
How to Win a Trade War: An Optimistic Guide to an Anxious Global Economy
Keynes, Soumaya
Bown, Chad P.
Hardcover
The Devil's Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the Cia, and the Rise of America's Secret Government
Talbot, David
Paperback
Embargo: The 1973 Oil Crisis That Changed the World (and What We Can Learn from It Now)
Delves Broughton, Philip
Hardcover
China Whisperers: The Voices That Have Shaped America's Views of Its Chief Geopolitical Rival
Kaplan, Robert D.
Hardcover
Polar War: Submarines, Spies, and the Struggle for Power in a Melting Arctic
Rosen, Kenneth R.
Hardcover
The World for Sale: Money, Power, and the Traders Who Barter the Earth's Resources
Blas, Javier
Farchy, Jack
Paperback
Autocrats vs. Democrats: China, Russia, America, and the New Global Disorder
McFaul, Michael
Hardcover
100 Deadly Skills: A Navy SEAL's Guide to Crushing Your Enemy, Fighting for Your Life, and Embracing Your Inner Badass
Emerson, Clint
Paperback
Axis of Aggressors: Countering the Cooperation of China, Russia, Iran & North Korea
Dezenski, Elaine K.
Bowman, Bradley L.
Montgomery, Rear Admiral (Ret) Mark
Paperback
Redwood: The Untold Story of the Cold War's Most Extraordinary Spy (Large Print Edition)
MacIntyre, Ben
Paperback
Tradecraft, Tactics, and Dirty Tricks: Russian Intelligence and Putin's Secret War
Wiswesser, Sean Michael
Hardcover
Treacherous Alliance: The Secret Dealings of Israel, Iran, and the United States
Parsi, Trita
Paperback
The Visionaries: Bretton Woods, the Marshall Plan, and the Making of the Post-World War II Order
Holland, James
Hardcover
In the War Room: The Inside Story of Israel's Fight Against Hamas and the Iranian Axis
Kaufman, Elliot
Bob, Yonah Jeremy
Hardcover
The Only Plane in the Sky (Revised and Expanded Edition for the 25th Anniversary): An Oral History of 9/11
Graff, Garrett M.
Hardcover
More Than a Shirt: How Football Shirts Explain Global Politics, Money and Power
D'Urso, Joey
Paperback
Unleash Your Humanity: Where Personal Awakening Becomes Collective Change
Sherif, Yasmine
Tavis, Scott
Paperback
Broken China: How the Economic Miracle Shattered and What It Means for the World
Wright, Logan
Hardcover
The Great Heist: China's Epic Campaign to Steal America's Secrets
Badger, Andrew
Shedd, David R.
Hardcover
A Moon Will Rise from the Darkness: Reports on Israel's Genocide in Palestine
Albanese, Francesca
Paperback
Operation Mincemeat: How a Dead Man and a Bizarre Plan Fooled the Nazis and Assured an Allied Victory
MacIntyre, Ben
Paperback
When America First Met China: An Exotic History of Tea, Drugs, and Money in the Age of Sail
Dolin, Eric Jay
Paperback
The Twilight War: The Secret History of America's Thirty-Year Conflict with Iran
Crist, David
Paperback
The Great Global Transformation: The United States, China, and the Remaking of the World Economic Order
Milanovic, Branko
Hardcover
We Are The Bad Guys: How The U.S. Wages War, Controls Economies, and Calls It Freedom
Lester, Michael
Paperback
Undersea War: The Battle to Control the Cables and Pipelines That Connect Our World
Braw, Elisabeth
Hardcover
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers of World War II
Mundy, Liza
Paperback
Against Our Better Judgment: The hidden history of how the United States was used to create Israel
Weir, Alison
Paperback
Those Angry Days: Roosevelt, Lindbergh, and America's Fight Over World War II, 1939-1941
Olson, Lynne
Paperback
Days of Rage: America's Radical Underground, the Fbi, and the Forgotten Age of Revolutionary Violence
Burrough, Bryan
Paperback
Dead Center: Behind the Scenes at the World's Largest Medical Examiner's Office
Ribowsky, Shiya
Shachtman, Tom
Paperback
Two World Wars and Hitler: Who Was Responsible?: Anglo-American Money, Foreign Agents and Geopolitics
MacGregor, Jim
O'Dowd, John
Paperback
The World for Sale: Money, Power, and the Traders Who Barter the Earth's Resources
Blas, Javier
Farchy, Jack
Hardcover
The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and Its Geostrategic Imperatives
Brzezinski, Zbigniew
Paperback
The Globalist Plan to Collapse Everything: To Usher in a New World Order
Roberts, Allan Paul
Paperback
Surprise, Kill, Vanish: The Secret History of CIA Paramilitary Armies, Operators, and Assassins
Jacobsen, Annie
Paperback
The Siege: A Six-Day Hostage Crisis and the Daring Special-Forces Operation That Shocked the World
MacIntyre, Ben
Paperback
G-Man (Pulitzer Prize Winner): J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century
Gage, Beverly
Paperback
9/11 and Terrorist Travel: Staff Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
National Comm on Terrorist Attacks
Paperback
Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict
Chenoweth, Erica
Stephan, Maria
Paperback
The Shortest History of War: From Hunter-Gatherers to Nuclear Superpowers - A Retelling for Our Times
Dyer, Gwynne
Paperback
