Bringing Clarity to Crisis
Demonstrations dominated the headlines across much of South & Southeast Asia last week, with several of the most notable focusing on demands for changes in government policy in India and Nepal. The Pakistani government also held its 2018 general election
Overall levels of political violence and protest events in South and southeast Asia dropped last week compared to the previous week. Key events in Asia last week included intense fighting between the Taliban and Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan, ongoing
Last week was marked by a surge in reported fatalities in Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as the start of the third session of the 21st Century Panglong Union Peace Conference amidst a spike in violence in Myanmar. In Afghanistan,
Last week in Afghanistan, a suicide bomber reportedly killed and wounded around 40 people in Jalalabad. Most of the victims belong to Afghanistan’s Sikh and Hindu minority groups and included the only Sikh electoral candidate in the upcoming general election.
Last week was marked by major protests in Afghanistan, ongoing election turmoil in Pakistan, and militant violence in Indonesia. In Afghanistan, following the end of the ceasefire, levels of political violence further increased by 20% compared to the previous week,
As Ramadan came to an end on June 14, the Afghan government decided to extend its ceasefire with the Taliban. The Taliban, however, resumed military operations of its spring offensive Eid and launched attacks in several provinces across the country
During the week of Eid, overall levels of political violence decreased by 45% in South and Southeast Asia. The decrease in political violence was caused by a significant drop in reported events from Afghanistan (minus 52%) and Pakistan (minus 74%)
Important developments in South and Southeast Asia this past week included ceasefire negotiations in Afghanistan, continued cross-border violence between Pakistan and India, and several protests throughout the region in solidarity with the people of Palestine. In a surprising move from
The key development in Asia during the week of May 27 was the passing of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) merger bill, also known as the 31st Amendment, with a two-thirds majority by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly on May
On May 14, the United States (US) government officially moved its Israeli embassy from Tel Aviv to the disputed city of Jerusalem (Haaretz, May 14, 2018). This action triggered demonstrations across Palestine. The largest of these were in the Gaza