Run GitHub PR/issue/comment/merge actions via `gh` CLI or the github MCP server - create or update a PR, post a comment, request review, label, transition status, merge with the right strategy. Use when the destination is github.com (or GitHub Enterprise) and the deliverable is a remote action with verification. Do not use for Bitbucket (use adk-publish-bitbucket), drafting the message itself (use adk-publish-commit), or reviewing the PR (use adk-review-pr).

ADK Publish / GitHub

Standalone task skill under the adk-publish category router. Executes GitHub actions through gh CLI (preferred) or the github MCP server, then verifies the action landed.

When to use

Open a new PR for the current branch.
Update an existing PR title, body, labels, reviewers, draft state.
Post a comment (issue or PR) or reply in a thread.
Request review from specific users / teams.
Close, reopen, or merge a PR with a chosen strategy.
Create or update an issue.
Transition project board status (when GitHub Projects is in use).

When NOT to use

Drafting the message text -> adk-publish-commit
Reviewing the PR's content -> adk-review-pr
Bitbucket destination -> adk-publish-bitbucket
Confluence / Drive destination -> adk-publish-confluence / adk-publish-gdrive

Inputs

Input	Required	Notes
`<action>`	yes	`pr-create` / `pr-update` / `pr-comment` / `pr-merge` / `pr-request-review` / `issue-create` / `issue-comment` / `label` / `status`
`<target>`	yes when applicable	PR number, issue number, or URL
`<body>`	optional	Comment / description body (markdown)
`<merge-strategy>`	optional for `pr-merge`	`merge` / `squash` (default) / `rebase`
`--auto`	optional	Skip confirmations on non-destructive actions

Workflow

Confirm intent - restate action, target, body summary, and any flags. Approval gate unless --auto (and never auto for pr-merge).
Check tooling - prefer gh CLI:
- gh auth status must be OK.
- If gh is missing, fall back to the github MCP server.
- If both are missing, stop and tell the user how to install gh or configure the MCP.
Resolve repo - detect org/repo from git remote get-url origin (must be a github.com host) or from the URL in <target>.
Execute - run the action via gh or MCP. Capture the resulting URL / SHA / id.
Verify - read back the artifact (gh pr view, gh issue view, MCP equivalent) to confirm the change landed (title matches, body matches, labels present, etc.).
Report - lead with the URL; include action, key changes, and verification status.

Action playbooks

pr-create

gh pr create \
  --title "<title>" \
  --body-file <markdown-file> \
  --base <base> \
  --head <head> \
  [--draft] \
  [--label <list>] \
  [--reviewer <list>]

Use a body file (not inline) so multi-line markdown is preserved. The body is provided by adk-publish-commit (action pr-describe) when chained.

pr-update

gh pr edit <number> --title "<title>" --body-file <markdown-file>
gh pr edit <number> --add-label <label> --remove-label <label>
gh pr ready <number>     # un-draft
gh pr ready <number> --undo  # back to draft

pr-comment

gh pr comment <number> --body-file <markdown-file>

pr-merge

Approval gate is mandatory; never --auto for merges.

gh pr merge <number> --squash --delete-branch
gh pr merge <number> --merge   # only when squash is not desired
gh pr merge <number> --rebase  # rare; ensure repo policy allows

Refuse to merge if: required checks failing, required reviews missing, branch behind base by configured rule, or branch has unresolved review threads (best-effort detection).

pr-request-review

gh pr edit <number> --add-reviewer <user-or-team>

issue-create / issue-comment

gh issue create --title "<title>" --body-file <markdown-file> [--label <list>] [--assignee <user>]
gh issue comment <number> --body-file <markdown-file>

label

gh issue edit <number> --add-label <label> --remove-label <label>
gh pr edit <number> --add-label <label> --remove-label <label>

status

If the repo uses GitHub Projects, transition the linked item via gh project item-edit or the MCP equivalent.

Output format

## GitHub action: <action>
- Target: <PR/issue URL>
- Result: <URL of created / updated / merged artifact>
- Tool used: <gh CLI | github MCP>

## Verification
- <field>: matches expected
- <field>: matches expected

## Follow-up
- <e.g. "branch deleted", "request review from @alice", "release draft updated">

Hard rules

Never auto-merge. pr-merge always requires explicit user approval.
Never force-push from this skill. If a force-push is required, the user runs it directly.
Never delete a branch as part of pr-create or pr-update (only as a side-effect of pr-merge --delete-branch).
All multi-line bodies are passed via --body-file; no inline heredoc shortcuts.
Verify after every write. If verification fails, surface it loudly.

Anti-patterns

Skipping verification because "the command exited 0".
Editing the PR title to "WIP" without coordinating with the author.
Force-pushing or rewriting history as part of a publish action.
Merging while CI is red because "the failing job is flaky".
Using gh and MCP in the same action, mid-flow. Pick one.

Examples

adk-publish-github pr-create --base main --head my-branch --body-file .temp/drafts/pr-body.md

adk-publish-github pr-comment 842 --body-file .temp/drafts/comment.md

adk-publish-github pr-merge 842 --merge-strategy squash

Clarifying questions (default-ask)

When running without --auto, the skill asks these questions in order, one at a time. Under --auto, the skill picks the safest option for each (see references/clarifying-questions.md) and reports the choices.

Action: pr-create / pr-update / pr-comment / pr-merge / pr-request-review / issue-create / issue-comment / label / status? — How to pick: Pick by destination + intent. pr-merge is special — always requires explicit gate even with --auto.
Target: PR/issue number or URL? — How to pick: Required for actions that operate on an existing artifact.
Body source: file path, inline draft, or auto-generate via adk-publish-commit? — How to pick: Prefer file path (drafted upstream). Auto-generate only when no body exists.

Default report: Action result URL + verification block (title/body/labels match expected) + tool used (gh / MCP).

Detailed report (on request or --verbose): Add: full command line, full read-back JSON, follow-up suggestions (request reviewers, link to release draft).

Artifact: github-action-result — The remote PR/issue/comment is the artifact. Locally: action log in .temp/notes/.

Artifact path: .temp/notes/publish-github-<action>-<target>.md

Clarifying questions (default-ask)

Action: pr-create / pr-update / pr-comment / pr-merge / pr-request-review / issue-create / issue-comment / label / status? — How to pick: Pick by destination + intent. pr-merge is special — always requires explicit gate even with --auto.
Target: PR/issue number or URL? — How to pick: Required for actions that operate on an existing artifact.
Body source: file path, inline draft, or auto-generate via adk-publish-commit? — How to pick: Prefer file path (drafted upstream). Auto-generate only when no body exists.

Default vs detailed output

Default report: Action result URL + verification block (title/body/labels match expected) + tool used (gh / MCP).

Detailed report (on request or --verbose): Add: full command line, full read-back JSON, follow-up suggestions (request reviewers, link to release draft).

Artifact: github-action-result — The remote PR/issue/comment is the artifact. Locally: action log in .temp/notes/.

Artifact path: .temp/notes/publish-github-<action>-<target>.md

References shipped with this skill

These files live in references/ next to this SKILL.md. Read them when the skill activates; they are inlined here so the skill is fully self-contained (no cross-skill or shared sources).

File	Purpose
`references/anti-patterns.md`	Things to avoid when running this skill.
`references/artifact-format.md`	The deliverable's format and where it lives (.temp/ contract).
`references/clarifying-questions.md`	The default-ask questions for this skill, with how-to-pick rubrics.
`references/constitution.md`	Non-negotiable rules and working/communication discipline.
`references/examples.md`	Example trigger phrases, invocation, and report shape.
`references/interaction-contract.md`	Default-ask, explained-options, --auto contract every skill must follow.
`references/mcp-fallback.md`	Preferred MCP server and the manual fallback when it is missing.
`references/output-format.md`	Default vs detailed report shapes; severity labels; verbosity rules.
`references/persona.md`	The agent persona that drives this skill.
`references/research-protocol.md`	Source ordering, stop conditions, evidence buckets, citation discipline.