New Jakarta Governor Takes Office As Ethnic and Religious Tensions Linger: On Monday, Anies Baswedan was sworn in as governor of Jakarta, ending a highly contested election that has tested the tolerance for ethnic and religious minorities in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation. Anies beat incumbent Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, who is ethnic Chinese and Protestant. Basuki was sentenced to two years in prison for blasphemy after being defeated by the Muslim Anies.
In his post-inaugural speech, Anies addressed religious and ethnic tensions: “Indonesia is not based on only one religion. Unity should also be celebrated.” Basuki was popular among Jakartans and had a “get-things-done” reputation while he was the city’s governor, overseeing huge infrastructure projects and addressing chronic flooding. “People think [Basuki] was a quick fixer—quick and effective. People will compare, and if people see that Anies doesn’t listen, it will be a disaster,” said Fabby Tumiwa, executive director at the Institute for Essential Services Reform in Jakarta.
Iraqi Forces Take Kirkuk: Iraqi security forces took direct control of the strategic city of Kirkuk, which has been under Kurdish control for over two years. In the advance, Iraqi forces took control of several assets, including the key Baba Karkar oil and gas field and the K1 military base. The province has one of the biggest oil fields in the country, with greater than 6 percent of the world’s oil coming from the area. The military operation was ordered by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who sent forces to the region to “impose security” and called on Kurdish Peshmerga forces for cooperation. Most of the local Kirkuk police have remained and are working with Iraqi officers. The military advance came just weeks after the Kurdish referendum for independence in which Kirkuk was claimed as part of Kurdish territory. Predictably, this did not go over well in Baghdad. Kirkuk is outside the borders of the internationally recognized autonomous Kurdish region in northwestern Iraq.
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