GUINEA WORM Thanks in large part to the work of the Carter Foundation, Guinea Worm may soon be a thing of the past. Just 30 cases of the condition were reported in 2017, half of them from a single outbreak in Ethiopia and the rest in isolated parts of Chad. Who says we can't have … Continue reading World update: January 20-21 2018

SYRIA Welp, Turkey finally did it: Turkey said it had begun a ground incursion into the Kurdish enclave in Syria known as Afrin a day after intense aerial bombardment that signalled the opening of hostilities in a new phase of Ankara’s involvement in the war across the border.   The launch of the ground campaign … Continue reading Middle East update: January 20-21 2018

THE TERRORISM COLA WARS Al-Qaeda, or at least individual al-Qaeda branches, are reportedly trying to take advantage of ISIS's misfortunes by undertaking recruitment efforts to poach fighters away from the newer upstart. This phenomenon has been reported in North Africa, the Sahel, Syria, and Yemen. So far it doesn't appear to have borne much fruit, … Continue reading World update: January 19 2018

ASIA KASHMIR At least four people--three of them civilians--were killed on Thursday during an exchange of mortar and gunfire across the Kashmiri line of control. Both Pakistani and Indian forces accused the other side of shooting first. INDIA India, meanwhile, tested a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile on Thursday, and while your immediate inclination might be … Continue reading World update: January 18 2018

MIDDLE EAST ISIS Airwars.org has published their 2017 year-end analysis, and if you're a big fan of America killing civilians in the name of the War on Terror, then you'll want to check it out: Across Iraq and Syria, casualty incidents tied to likely Coalition strikes more than tripled compared to the year before. To … Continue reading Middle East update: January 18 2018

ASIA AFGHANISTAN Taliban leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada reportedly sent negotiators to Islamabad on Monday to meet with representatives of Afghan politician Pir Syed Hamid Gilani about the possibility of restarting peace talks with Kabul. The Afghan government does not appear to have sanctioned the meeting and there's no indication anything came of it. MYANMAR Police in Rakhine state … Continue reading World update: January 17 2018

SYRIA Turkey seems to be walking back a bit from its "imminent" attack on the YPG in Afrin and Manbij. On Wednesday, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ told reporters that Turkey will take action in northern Syria unless its demands are met, which is a bit less provocative than "the shooting should commence any minute … Continue reading Middle East update: January 17 2018

OIL Don't look now, but oil prices are back up. Brent crude closed at just shy of $70/barrel on Tuesday, the highest it's been in about three years. The joint Saudi-Russian agreement to cut supply is finally starting to have some bite to it as stockpiles are being reduced, which is bringing the oil market … Continue reading World update: January 16 2018

SYRIA Welp, start your engines: Turkey's president has warned of imminent military offensives on two Kurdish-held areas in northern Syria, as tanks and troops mass on the border.   Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Syrian rebels would support Turkish efforts to clear the "terror nests" of Afrin and Manbij.   The areas are controlled by the … Continue reading Middle East update: January 16 2018

ASIA AFGHANISTAN The New York Times has some deep background on the ongoing clash between Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and the fired-but-still-there-anyway Balkh governor Atta Muhammad Nur. Ghani's supporters portray the ex(?)-warlord as corrupt and unaccountable, while Nur contends that Ghani is attempting to sideline him for political reasons. The US may also have a reason … Continue reading World update: January 15 2018