Nabi Misdaq ( ps, نبي مصداق) is an Afghan author and a journalist. He was the founder and head of the Pashto Section at

BBC World Service The BBC World Service is an international broadcasting, international broadcaster owned and operated by the BBC, with funding from the Government of the United Kingdom, British Government through the Foreign Secretary, Foreign Secretary's o ...

in the early 1980s. In 2015, b
special decree
and under the 64th article of the constitution, President

Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai Mohammad Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai (born 19 May 1949) is an Afghan politician, academic, and economist who served as the president of Afghanistan from September 2014 until August 2021, when his government was overthrown by the Taliban. Born in ...

, named Nabi Misdaq as his new Media Affairs advisor.

Origins and education

Misdaq is from the

Zazi The Zazi ( ps, ځاځي; plur. ځاځی), also spelled Zazai, or Jaji, is a Karlani Afghan tribe. They are found in Paktia and Khost provinces in the Loya Paktia region of southeastern Afghanistan, as well as Kurram Valley of Pakistan, but also h ...

tribe of

Pashtuns Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically re ...

, in the

Paktia Province Paktia (Pashto/Dari: – ''Paktyā'') is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the east of the country. Forming part of the larger Loya Paktia region, Paktia Province is divided into 15 districts and has a population of roughly 6 ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

. He went to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

on a scholarship in the early 1960s. Misdaq has a BS.c. Hon. from

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

and

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

and

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...

from

Sussex University , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

. He has written several books (''Afghanistan'',

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

, 2003) and academic papers in English. Recently he finished a

Pashto Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani (). Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official languages ...

-English dictionary which is due to be published. In the meantime, he is writing a book which contains Afghan jokes translated into English. He is also the author of many articles widely for Afghan exile press in both Pashto and

Dari (Persian) Dari (, , ), also known as Dari Persian (, ), is the variety of the Persian language spoken in Afghanistan. Dari is the term officially recognised and promoted since 1964 by the Afghan government for the Persian language,Lazard, G.Darī � ...

over the years.

Career

Misdaq worked for the

Bush House Bush House is a Grade II listed building at the southern end of Kingsway between Aldwych and the Strand in London. It was conceived as a major new trade centre by American industrialist Irving T. Bush, and commissioned, designed, funded, a ...

throughout the 1980s and 1990s, where he founded the Pashto Section, and broadcast regularly, becoming one of the best known voices in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He twice interviewed the exiled Afghan King

Zahir Shah Mohammed Zahir Shah (Pashto/Dari: , 15 October 1914 – 23 July 2007) was the last king of Afghanistan, reigning from 8 November 1933 until he was deposed on 17 July 1973. Serving for 40 years, Zahir was the longest-serving ruler of Afghanistan s ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

Sources

*Misdaq, Nabi - ''Afghanistan: Political Frailty and External Interference'' *Fields, Rona M. - ''Martyrdom: The Psychology, Theology, and Politics of Self-Sacrifice'' *Maley, William - ''The Afghanistan Wars'' *Rais, Rasul Bakhsh - ''War without Winners: Afghanistan's Uncertain Transition after the Cold War''

References

External links

*http://www.dgroups.org/groups/worldbank/FMG/index.cfm?op=dsp_showmsg&listname=FMG&msgid=389521&cat_id=13235 *http://heartofasia.wordpress.com/2008/04/21/father-of-yoshi-phd/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Misdaq, Nabi Pashtun people Afghan journalists Afghan expatriates in England Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of the University of Sussex Living people Year of birth missing (living people)