Pakistani opposition leader, Imran Khan, is scheduled to lead a protest against the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on 14 August. The protest was called to highlight election irregularities in last year’s elections, and it has been banned by the government. There is fear that the protests could get out of hand, and many fear that Khan is a stalking horse for the Pakistani military that seeks to weaken the civilian government. Other elements of Pakistani society are also interested in joining the protests, so the event will be watched closely.
The US has sent 130 combat advisers to Iraq, adding to the 250 soldiers already there. Their role is to provide tactical assessments to the US as it attempts to aid the Kurdish forces fighting the Islamic State. The US was also strongly supportive of the change in government in Iraq, although Nouri al-Maliki has yet to concede. The deepening relationship between the US and Iraq is comprehensible in the short term given the threat of genocide to the Yazidi people, but the long-term consequences of this commitment are not clear. It is a risky game.
The second 3-day truce in Gaza will end tomorrow, and there does not seem to be any progress in the discussions taking place in Cairo between the Palestinians and Israel. It likely that both sides would prefer to extend the cease-fire, but their publics will likely demand more tangible signs of progress. There are rumors that the discussions are centering on the possibility of opening a port in Gaza, a concession that would be very difficult for Israel to make.
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