ASIA PAKISTAN Pakistan's Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's ban on holding political office also prevents him from serving as leader of his PML-N party. It also nullified all decisions he's taken as party leader since the ban was put in place last year, including candidate selection. This could put … Continue reading World update: February 21 2018

SYRIA DEVELOPING: An AP story hit after I posted that's worth a mention. Sweden and Kuwait are calling for a Thursday vote in the UN Security Council on a resolution that would impose a 30 day humanitarian ceasefire throughout Syria. Russia has reportedly been arguing against it, saying (and this isn't wrong) that the UN has … Continue reading Middle East update: February 21 2018

EUROPE RUSSIA Hey Russians! A new viral video wants to let you know that you need to vote for Vladimir Putin--or, you know, somebody else I guess--in Russia's presidential election next month or else, uh, you'll have to take in a gay tenant? Wait, what the hell- The video is set on 17 March, the … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: February 19-20 2018

ASIA AZERBAIJAN James Dorsey writes that the contest between Iran and Saudi Arabia for influence in the Islamic world has expanded to Azerbaijan: The two countries’ latest battleground is oil-rich Azerbaijan, an authoritarian, majority Shia Muslim but secular former Soviet republic on Iran’s northern border with a substantial ethnic population in Iran itself. Recent Saudi … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: February 19-20 2018

SYRIA Before we talk about Turkey and Syria potentially going to war in Afrin, I think we should say something about Eastern Ghouta, where over 250 people are believed to have been killed since Sunday thanks primarily to airstrikes and artillery blasts from forces aligned with Bashar al-Assad. Assuming these figures are accurate, always a … Continue reading Middle East update: February 19-20 2018

ASIA AFGHANISTAN Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has now had a second provincial governor tell him to get bent when Ghani tried to sack him. Ghani tried, and has apparently failed, to can Abdul Karim Khadam, governor of Samangan Province. Khadam is a member of the Jamiat-e Islami party along with Atta Muhammad Nur, the governor of … Continue reading World update: February 17-18 2018

SYRIA So first the big news. According to Reuters, and I would take this with a grain of salt because they don't seem to have any confirmation of it, the YPG and the Syrian government have reached an agreement that will see the Syrian army move into Afrin in the coming days to fight the … Continue reading Middle East update: February 17-18 2018

ASIA AZERBAIJAN This is sure to go over well: Azerbaijan’s president has claimed that large parts of Armenia’s territory are Azerbaijan’s “historic lands,” vowing to return to them. The fraught assertion threatens to derail any progress, however slight, in peace talks between the two countries in recent months.   “Yerevan is our historical land and … Continue reading World update: February 16 2018

SYRIA As usual, civilians are taking the brunt of the pounding as Turkey tries to grind out more territory in Afrin: One-month-old Heyim Hassan was receiving treatment for a chest infection in the Afrin general hospital in northern Syria when a shell landed a few meters (feet) away. His panicked father whisked him out of … Continue reading Middle East update: February 16 2018

It's been a bit of a long day so I'm going to try to keep things brief and contained to one post tonight. MIDDLE EAST SYRIA Reuters is reporting that over 300 Russian mercenaries were killed or injured in last week's US airstrike in Deir Ezzor. Around 100 of them were killed. This is the … Continue reading World update: February 15 2018