News that the White House had ordered the Pentagon to withdraw half of US troops in Afghanistan provoked widespread concern that the move would kneecap efforts to broker a peace deal to end America’s longest war, but one group was celebrating the reports — the Taliban. One senior Taliban commander from Afghanistan’s Helmand province said “The 17-year-long struggle and sacrifices of thousands … Read More

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights observed that thousands of people in Syria have been seen participating in sit-ins and protests in towns east of the Euphrates River, protesting against the decision of the USA to withdraw from Syria. They also are protesting against the military operation Turkey intends to carry out against the Kurds and the  Syria Democratic Forces, … Read More

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reports the surprise announcement that the U.S. will quickly withdraw all its troops from Syria is the stuff of nightmares for many of the Kurds that have been living under the protection of U.S forces and the American-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). One SDF member said “Everyone is upset, sad and afraid,” and went … Read More

A huge 7.4 magnitude earthquake hit off Russia’s east coast triggering a tsunami warning in the region. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake hit about five miles deep and struck about 50 miles west of Nikol’skoye. Following the earthquake, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) issued a tsunami warning for the Komandorskiye Ostrova region in Russia. After the initial … Read More

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said this week that Islamic State militants in Syria have executed nearly 700 prisoners in the past two month in eastern Syria. The UK-based war monitoring group said the prisoners were among 1,350 civilians and fighters that Islamic State had been holding in territory along Syria’s Euphrates River. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), led … Read More

U.S. President Trump has suddenly called for all U.S. troops to exit Syria while also declaring victory over ISIS there. However, U.S. military news outlets as the Army Times and others are expressing surprise and amazement over his statements. Trump’s reported call for a rapid withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria comes in stark contrast to statements by his own national security … Read More

For the first time ever, in 2018 Alaska recorded 50,000 earthquakes in a calendar year. As of last check on the Alaska Earthquake Center website, the number of earthquakes reported in Alaska so far this year was 50,499. They also reported that 18 days after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake shook Southcentral Alaska, nearly 5,000 aftershocks have been registered by seismic sensors, … Read More

U.S. health officials are saying this year has seen a record number of cases of a mysterious paralyzing illness in children. The condition is called acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM. It’s still not clear what’s causing the kids to lose the ability to move their face, neck, back, arms or legs. The symptoms tend to occur about a week after the … Read More