ASIA AFGHANISTAN An Afghan commando who had gone over to the Taliban opened fire on a group of Americans in Nangarhar province's Achin district on Saturday, killing three US special forces soldiers. Earlier in the day a US airstrike/"friendly fire" incident accidentally killed at least three Afghan soldiers in Helmand province. PAKISTAN Pakistani authorities are … Continue reading Asia/Africa/Europe update: June 10-11 2017

Hey, so I know I said earlier that there likely wouldn't be any updates tonight, but I finally got WordPress to work again and blogging has prevented me from throwing something at my television, and plus writing these things is much easier if I keep up with things on a nightly basis, so I managed … Continue reading Middle East update: June 10-11 2017

Friends, I'm going to level with you. Between Qatar and Iran and now the UK elections, it has been a hell of a week for a person who obsessively blogs about world news. So this update is really kind of a catch-all for bits of news from everywhere else, though I know some things probably … Continue reading Asia/Africa/Americas update: June 8-9 2017

UNITED KINGDOM Sometimes you just have to tip your cap to a master, and while I'm no expert on British political history or the history of electoral politics more generally, I can't help but tip my cap to Theresa May, who yesterday achieved what has to be one of the greatest self-inflicted political wounds of … Continue reading Europe (i.e., UK) update: June 8-9 2017

IRAN We've learned a bit more about five of the men who, along with two other men and one woman, attacked Iran's parliament building and Ayatollah Khomeini's mausoleum on Wednesday, killing 17 people in the process. On Thursday, the Iranian government said that these five attackers had been recruited by ISIS from inside Iran. They were … Continue reading Middle East update: June 8-9 2017

COMEY TIME Former FBI Director James Comey will testify tomorrow before the Senate intelligence committee regarding his firing and allegations that President Donald Trump tried to "encourage" him to drop the investigation into ties between Trump's campaign and Russia. First, I would suggest you read this summary of recent developments in the Trump-Russia story leading … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: June 7 2017

ASIA AFGHANISTAN The AP is reporting on a letter its reporters have seen that seems to suggest there's some kind of power struggle going on within ISIS-Khorasan, between the group's Uzbek contingent and its Pakistani contingent. The dispute basically seems to revolve around the degree of collaboration between Pakistani ISIS members and, you guessed it, … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: June 7 2017

IRAN Hey, I've got an idea. What if everybody took a day off? I mean everybody, all human beings, just quit doing whatever for a day. Skip school, take a day off of work, don't tweet (always good advice), and, just for a day mind you, maybe don't kill anybody. Sound good? Apparently not: At … Continue reading Middle East update: June 7 2017

FRANCE What appears to have been an attempted terrorist attack was thwarted by French police on Tuesday outside Paris's Notre Dame Cathedral. A man carrying knives and a hammer approached officers and began striking one with the hammer, while reportedly shouting "this is for Syria," before at least one of the officers shot and wounded … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: June 6 2017

ASIA UZBEKISTAN Uzbek Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Azimov is now ex-deputy prime minister. He's been given a different government post, undoubtedly further removed from the levers of power, as President Shavkat Mirziyoyev works to sideline him and consolidate power. Azimov was once one of the three most powerful political figures in Uzbekistan but his fortunes have … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: June 6 2017