In Pakistan's northwest, rise in extortion demands signals advance of Taliban
PESHAWAR: Soon after a grenade struck his house in Peshawar city three months ago, Ihsan Khan, a well-known trader in the capital of the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, received a phone call. “Next time, the entire home will be blown up if you don’t pay Rs300 million ($1.2 million),” the voice on the other end said.