- Dozens of Shiite militias in Baghdad loyal to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are celebrating the downfall of ISIS in Iraq and Syria. During the height of the ISIS advance into Iraq, Shiite militias resisted the drive for a new caliphate, as Iraq’s government troops melted away. While the United States and its allies waged an air and ground campaign to defeat ISIS, Iran may be the ultimate winner after the downfall of the Sunni terrorist group. (“How Iran, the Mideast’s New Superpower, Is Expanding Its Footprint across the Region – and What It Means,” Christian Science Monitor, Dec. 17, 2017)
- South Africa’s African National Congress turned a page when the party’s members elected former Nelson Mandela advisor Cyril Ramaphosa as its new leader and candidate to be South Africa’s president in 2019. The current deputy president defeated Nkosazana Diamini-Zuma, a veteran politician and Zuma’s former wife. Yet, Ramaphosa, backed by many middle-class blacks, failed to win a clear mandate for change, winning by just 179 ballots out of 4,708 cast. The top ANC positions are now split between reformers who backed Ramaphosa and supporters of current President Jacob Zuma, who is mired in corruption scandals. (“No Clean Sweep for South Africa’s Ramaphosa in ANC Race,” Reuters, Dec. 21, 2017; “South Africa’s New Leader to Focus on Corruption and ‘radical Economic Transformation’,”Christian Science Monitor, Dec. 21, 2017; “How Jacob Zuma Captured South Africa, and How He Might Lose Control,” The Economist, Dec. 9, 2017)
- During a Black Lives Matter protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to protest the killing of 37-year-old Alton Sterling, a confrontation spread onto the lawn of onlooker Lisa Batiste. She was sitting on her porch with her adult daughter but soon her front lawn became the scene of a melee between Baton Rouge police and African-American activists. (“Protesters Against Police Violence Risk the Very Thing They’re Fighting,” The Nation, Dec. 1, 2017)
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