Update for Saturday, July 23, 2016

This is breaking news as I write at 9:30 ET, so we have to piece together the story from fragmentary accounts, but the death toll now stands at 61, with hundreds injured, in a bomb attack on a peaceful demonstration by members of the Hazara minority. The Taliban have disavowed the attack, and IS has claimed responsibility. The Hazara, who are Shiite muslims, were demanding that a proposed power line be routed through their territory, which centers on Bamiyan.

I’m sure we’ll be seeing candlelight vigils in every U.S. city.

In Iraq meanwhile, bombs targeting civilians fleeing Shirqat kill 13 and injure 9. The grip of IS on the town has been weakening, giving civilians the opportunity to flee.

This is a (weird)  indication of how convoluted the situation is in Iraq. Iraqi forces are digging a miles-long trench north of Fallujah, apparently to prevent government-allied (presumably Shiite) militias from entering the city, following allegations of looting and abuse of civilians. There are fears that the project will hinder repopulation of the city. More detail on the difficult situation in Fallujah from AP.

The power struggle among Iraqi Shiite factions may be spilling into the streets with their respective militias.