Globe Trot: Violence spikes in Afghanistan ahead of U.S. withdrawal

AFGHANISTAN: Taliban insurgency is on the upswing—no surprise—as U.S. forces prepare for a departure at the end of this month. At least 19 people were killed in three attacks on Saturday.

AUSTRALIA: The man who held hostages in a downtown Sydney café for 16 hours before police stormed in is Man Haron Monis, also known as Sheikh Haron, a self-styled Muslim cleric. The café was just blocks from the U.S. consulate. Australian theologian Mark Durie last month discussed the Islamic teaching behind the Islamic revivalism fueling ISIS and others. Durie’s work is worth a look, as plainly the threat of jihadi violence is spreading in the West.

CHINA: Customers in China are expected to buy 500 million smartphones in 2015—three times the sales volume in the United States (and almost double the U.S. population)—and a telephone maker you’ve never heard of, Xiaomi, is about to give Apple a run for its money.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM: An amendment just introduced to the U.S. International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 adds non-state actors to the group of bodies the U.S. government could sanction for violations—an important, overdue tool in the fight against ISIS, Boko Haram, and others.

WORLD: We’re wrapping up our 29th year of publication and our year-in-review coverage heads to the printer on Wednesday. What theme captures the year for you?