Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Syrian Civil War Control Map & Report: June 2016 (Subscription)

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Research by Djordje Djukic. Map by onestopmap.com, Evan Centanni, and Djordje Djukic

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Map of fighting and territorial control in Syria's Civil War (Free Syrian Army rebels, Kurdish YPG, Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Al-Nusra Front, Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), and others), updated for June 2016. Now includes terrain and major roads (highways). Highlights recent locations of conflict and territorial control changes, such as Manbij, Mare, Tanf border crossing, Thawra/Tabqa, Arak, and more. A lot has happened in Syria in the past month, with major SDF and Syrian Army advances against the so-called "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL), as well as various smaller changes to rebel control.
 
See all this and more on the latest update to PolGeoNow's concise, professional Syrian Civil War control map, which includes a timeline of changes since our previous Syria map report in mid-May.

This map and report are premium professional content, available to paid subscribers of the PolGeoNow Conflict Mapping Service.

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Exclusive map report includes:
  • Up-to-date map of current territorial control in Syria, color-coded for the Assad government, rebel groups, "Islamic State" (ISIS/ISIL) extremists, and Kurdish/SDF forces. 
  • Special symbols indicating towns dominated by rebels of Al Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra (the Nusra Front) and US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
  • Detailed indication of city-by-city control, highlighting key towns and other locations important to current events.
  • Locations of recent fighting and military operations, including Manbij, Thawra (Tabqa), Mare, Tanf border crossing, Arak, and more.
  • Detailed timeline of important events and changes to territorial control since May 13, 2016, compiled by our Syria-Iraq expert, with links to sources.

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This map and report are not available for automated purchase to non-subscribers. If you need access or republication rights for only this map report, contact service@polgeonow.com for options.

Friday, June 24, 2016

UK Votes to Quit EU: Map of How Britain Voted in the Brexit Referendum


By Evan Centanni

UK Brexit vote map: Map of election results in Britain's June 2016 referendum on leaving the European Union (EU). Continuous red-to-blue color scheme gives a more honest depiction of the similarities between different election districts. Colorblind accessible.
Map of election results in the UK's "Brexit" referendum. Modified by Evan Centanni from Wikimedia map by Mirrorme22, Nilfanion, TUBS, and Sting (CC BY-SA).

Brexit by Constituency

The results are in for yesterday's referendum on UK membership in the European Union, and the winner is "Leave". Brits voted by a margin of 52% to 48% in favor of exiting the European Union, making a "Brexit" (British exit from the EU) more or less guaranteed in the coming years. Britain will become the first member country ever to leave the EU, and the British overseas territory of Gibraltar is expected to get pulled out with it.

Learn More: Brexit: 9 Geography Facts You Should Know About the Referendum and Britain's EU Membership

Who Voted to Stay

Voter tendencies varied a lot from place to place. Support for the "Remain" side was strong across Scotland, culturally Irish parts of Northern Ireland, the London area, and a handful of other cities in England (led by Cambridge, Oxford, and Brighton).

By far the greatest show of support for Remain was a win by 96% in Gibraltar - which isn't even in the UK proper, but got to vote because of its unique status as a British external territory that's in the EU.

Thursday, June 23, 2016

Brexit: 9 Geography Facts You Should Know About the Referendum and Britain's EU Membership

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By Evan Centanni 

The European Union. Click for full map and list of members.
Today the UK is voting on whether to leave the European Union. If you've been paying attention to the news, you've probably heard about the intense debate over whether Brits should vote "Leave" or "Remain". But if you're like me and mainly in this for the geography trivia, here are some fun facts you might not know about the so-called "Brexit":

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

On the Ground: Gibraltar and the "Brexit" Referendum

This is the first installment of PolGeoNow's On the Ground, a new series of exclusive photo essays on what political geography looks like in the real world. Whether it's borders, nationalism, or other geopolitical phenomena, we'll bring the on-the-ground situations to your screen in vivid detail.

Update 2016-06-24: Gibraltar on Thursday voted in favor of the UK staying in the European Union, by an incredible margin of  96% to 4%. However, the UK as a whole voted to leave the EU, meaning that Gibraltar can expect to get pulled out with it, against the wishes of the Gibraltarians.
 
Photo of the Gibraltar Stronger in Europe campaign office on the British territory's main street. Gibraltar's population is overwhelmingly against a so-called Brexit, or departure of the UK from the European Union.
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Map of Gibraltar and its location in Europe relative to the UK and Spain
Right: Map of Gibraltar by Eric Gaba (source; CC BY-SA)
Left: Gibraltar's location in Europe (based on this Wikimedia Commons map by TUBS; CC BY-SA)
Gibraltar prepares to vote on whether UK should leave European Union
Last month, PolGeoNow's Evan Centanni and Meihsing Kuo visited the small British territory of Gibraltar (pronounced "jih-BRALL-ter"), one month ahead of the UK's referendum on whether to leave or remain in the European Union (EU).

Gibraltar, a tiny peninsula connected to Spain - and claimed by the Spanish government - is the only British overseas territory that's part of the EU. It's also the only external territory whose residents are eligible to vote in the so-called "Brexit" referendum without living in the UK proper. ("Brexit" is an abbreviation for "British exit" from the EU.)

Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Ukraine War Control Map & Report: June 2016

There are newer versions of this map available. To see them, view all Ukraine updates.

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Map of rebel territorial control in Ukraine's eastern provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk, claimed by the breakaway Donetsk People's Republic and Lugansk People's Republic. Updated for June 2016, with Minsk ceasefire lines shown.
Map by Evan Centanni (all rights reserved)
Timeline by Djordje Djukic, with additional reporting by Evan Centanni

Summary of Developments
PolGeoNow's previous Ukraine control map report was published in March of last year, just a month after a ceasefire was implemented under the Minsk II agreement, a hard-won deal between the Kiev government and representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (established by rebels with extensive support from the other side of the Russian border). Since then, the ceasefire has broadly held, which explains why the war in eastern Ukraine has largely dropped out of world newspaper front pages. However, fighting has continued off and on at a reduced level, and the ceasefire agreement is still on shaky ground. This map and timeline report describe what has happened over the past year, including some small changes to territorial control.