Born in Pakistan in 1964, he did his M. A. in Defense and Strategic Studies, and M. Phil. and Ph. D. in American Studies from Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), Islamabad. From 1990 to 1996, he served as Editorial Assistant at The Muslim and Diplomatic Correspondent at The Nation in Islamabad. In 1996, he joined Area Study Centre, QAU, as Senior Research Fellow. After three years, he left for North Cyprus, where he served as Assistant Professor/Vice Chair of International Relations at Eastern Mediterranean University until joining his present position in 2005. He has also taught at Foreign Service Academy and National Defense University, Islamabad.

Ishtiaq Ahmad is a highly published scholar, with several research publications, including books, articles in refereed journals, and chapters in edited volumes and encyclopedias published internationally. His books include Gulbuddin Hekmatyar: An Afghan Trail from Jihad to Terrorism (2004), and Nuclear Non-Proliferation Issues in South Asia (1996). He has also edited Pakistan Journal of American Studies.

He is a regular contributor to television and radio, and has been interviewed by major international news networks and wire services, including Al-Jazeera, Al-Arabiya, CNN, Fox News, Los Angeles Times, Reuters and AFP. He writes regularly in the news media, and his columns have appeared in a number of newspapers and news websites, including The News International, The Nation, Friday Times, Turkish Daily News, Tehelka.com and Islam Online. His views and writings on the conflict in Afghanistan and India-Pakistan relations have great influence in the region.  

Ishtiaq Ahmad has received several international fellowships. He was a Fulbright Fellow at University of California, Santa Barbra (2006), International Red Cross Fellow at National Law School of India University, Bangalore (2006), Hanns-Seidel Stiftung Fellow at Christian-Albrechts University, Kiel, Germany (1997) and International Visitors Program Fellow, USA (1990). He also received a human rights award from late Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

He speaks frequently at  international conferences and has attended conferences and workshops held in the United States, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Russia, India, Malaysia, Hungary, Slovenia, the United Arab Emirates, Azerbaijan, and organized, among others, by International Studies Association (USA), Social Sciences Research Council (USA), and Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies (Italy). He is a member of International Studies Association, American Political Science Association and Council of Social Sciences of Pakistan. He is also a Trustee of the Center for Research and Security Studies, Islamabad.