Best wishes to any readers who are observing Ashura. EUROPE UKRAINE The Ukrainian parliament voted on Thursday to send constitutional amendments to the country's constitutional court that, if passed, would open the door for Ukraine to join NATO and the European Union. In a speech to parliament, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that the Ukrainian … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: September 20 2018

Best wishes to any readers who are observing Ashura. ASIA AFGHANISTAN The Taliban carried out "a series of coordinated attacks" against three security checkpoints in Ghazni province on Thursday morning, killing at least five Afghan security forces. Additionally, five people were reportedly wounded by a roadside bomb in Nangarhar province. PAKISTAN One of Imran Khan's … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: September 20 2018

Best wishes to any readers who are observing Ashura. SYRIA Unsurprisingly, Turkish and Russian officials explained to the United Nations Syria task force on Thursday that they're still putting together all the details of their big plan to avoid a battle in Idlib province or, at least, to delay one for a few weeks. On … Continue reading Middle East update: September 20 2018

POVERTY A new World Bank report finds that while the number of people living in extreme poverty continued to decline last year, the rate of decline slowed considerably and that's not the only bad news: In its annual report, the Washington-based development agency said the proportion of people living in such conditions had fallen to … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: September 19 2018

ASIA PAKISTAN In a surprising turn of events, former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his daughter, and her husband all had their prison sentences for corruption suspended by the Islamabad High Court on Wednesday while they appeal their convictions. It's unclear whether this will have any political reverberations--Sharif is still under a lifetime ban from … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: September 19 2018

HOLIDAYS Yom Kippur began at sundown on Tuesday, and Ashura begins at sundown tomorrow, so Columbia University professor Hamid Dabashi has put together a little piece on the two religious observances' shared heritage: Both Jewish and Muslim observers have noticed this proximity between Yom Kippur and Ashoura. On the occasion of the two holidays coinciding in … Continue reading Middle East update: September 19 2018

G’mar Tov to those who are observing Yom Kippur. EUROPE GERMANY Because he's by all accounts heavily in the bag for the Nazi-lite Alternative for Germany party, the now former head of the country's BfV domestic spying agency, Hans-Georg Maaßen, was promoted on Tuesday to a higher position within the interior ministry. While this is a … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: September 18 2018

G’mar Tov to those who are observing Yom Kippur. ASIA AFGHANISTAN At least nine Afghan police officers were killed late Monday in an "insider" attack in Balkh province. As is typical in these sorts of incidents, the officer who attacked the others took their weapons and went off to join the Taliban. MYANMAR The International … Continue reading Asia/Africa update: September 18 2018

G’mar Tov to those who are observing Yom Kippur. SYRIA It looks like we've narrowly averted World War III in Syria again, so whatever else is happening today at least we have that going for us. If you were with us yesterday, then you know that Israel launched a missile strike against a weapons facility … Continue reading Middle East update: September 18 2018

EUROPE UKRAINE Goldsmiths, University of London scholar Linda Kinstler discusses the Paul Manafort case in light of Ukraine's endemic corruption problem: In Ukraine, where corruption remains widespread, few expect the judicial system to actually render justice. So news of Paul Manafort’s guilty plea for two felony counts, both linked to his extensive work as a … Continue reading Europe/Americas update: September 17 2018