ASIA AFGHANISTAN At least 11 people were killed on Sunday by a roadside bomb in Nangarhar province. There's been no claim of responsibility. The attack came a day after at least 36 people were killed in over 120 attacks across the country that were intended to impede the parliamentary election. The bloodiest single attack killed … Continue reading World update: October 20-21 2018

SYRIA Both the Syrian Observatory and the White Helmets reported that an explosion in Idlib province killed at least three people on Sunday. Presumably this was a little rebel-on-rebel violence though at this point there aren't any details beyond the death toll. The US has acknowledged conducting airstrikes in and around the town of Sousa … Continue reading Middle East update: October 20-21 2018

ASIA AFGHANISTAN Afghans will vote in their parliamentary election on Saturday under threat of violence from both the Taliban and ISIS. It very much remains to be seen how much the risk of violence will tamp down turnout, but in the lead up to the election nine candidates were assassinated and hundreds of people killed … Continue reading World update: October 19 2018

SYRIA Syrian media and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights are both reporting that multiple civilians (the SOHR says at least 46) have been killed in US airstrikes on the town of Sousa over the past two days. Sousa is in the pocket of territory still controlled by ISIS around the town of Hajin, where … Continue reading Middle East update: October 19 2018

EUROPE KOSOVO The Kosovar parliament voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to create a 5000 man standing army (with 3000 reserves) against objections by the country's Serbian minority (whose legislators boycotted the vote), the Serbian government, and NATO, which still has a peacekeeping force there. Kosovo already has a 2500 man security force that this measure would … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: October 18 2018

ASIA ARMENIA Eurasianet's Peter Liakhov looks at how Armenian President Armen Sarkissian has managed to strengthen his position even though he's a member of the increasingly discredited Republican Party: When parliamentarians from Armenia’s old guard joined forces in early October to try to block Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s ability to hold early elections, Pashinyan dubbed the move … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: October 18 2018

SYRIA Russia and Turkey have reportedly agreed to extend their deadline for meeting the terms of their deescalation agreement in Idlib, which is good because we're already three days past the old deadline and those terms still haven't been met. Anything that delays fighting in Idlib is good, but obviously this only kicks the can … Continue reading Middle East update: October 18 2018

ASIAGEORGIA The Georgian Orthodox Church is apparently split internally over whether or not to recognize an autocephalous Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Politically this makes sense--while Georgia certainly has no love for Russia these days, it's also in no position to antagonize Moscow. AFGHANISTAN A suicide bomber killed at least two Afghan civilians in an attack near … Continue reading World update: October 17 2018

SYRIA United Nations Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura is leaving his post for, uh, "personal reasons" at the end of November. I don't use those quotes to make fun of de Mistura, who has failed but in a job at which there never was much chance for success. On his way out de Mistura says … Continue reading Middle East update: October 17 2018