Alive Links.org

By Tom Perry and Angus McDowall BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Lebanese army launched an offensive on Saturday against an Islamic State enclave on the northeast border with Syria as the Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah announced an assault on the militants from the Syrian side of the frontier. The Lebanese army operation got underway at 5 a.m. (0200 GMT), targeting Islamic State positions near the town of Ras Baalbek with rockets, artillery and helicopters, a Lebanese security source said. The operation by Hezbollah and the Syrian army targeted the area across the border in the western Qalamoun region of Syria.

Sat, 19 Aug 2017 04:33:59 -0400

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Residents of more than 400 homes in a prime eclipse-viewing location in Oregon were ordered to evacuate Friday because of a rapidly growing wildfire that had already closed access to a portion of a wilderness area and a regional highway.

Fri, 18 Aug 2017 22:15:49 -0400

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A death penalty expert says Arkansas' recent purchase of a lethal injection drug — in a small amount and at a cheap price — suggests the state has found a reliable supplier to help it move 30 inmates from death row to the execution chamber.

Fri, 18 Aug 2017 21:03:39 -0400

By Jeff Mason and Steve Holland WASHINGTON/HAGERSTOWN, Md. (Reuters) - President Donald Trump on Friday fired his chief strategist Steve Bannon in the latest White House shake-up, removing a far-right architect of his 2016 election victory and a driving force behind his nationalist and anti-globalization agenda. Bannon's firing, a year and a day after Trump hired him as his campaign chief, put an abrupt end to the rabble-rousing political provocateur's tumultuous tenure in a White House riven with rivalries and back-stabbing during which he clashed with more-moderate factions. White House officials said Trump had told new Chief of Staff John Kelly to crack down on the bickering and infighting, and that Bannon's fate was sealed by comments published on Wednesday in the American Prospect liberal magazine in which he spoke of targeting his adversaries within the administration.

Fri, 18 Aug 2017 18:58:35 -0400

An activist known for helping Arab women in the Chicago area lost her U.S. citizenship Thursday and will be deported for failing to disclose convictions for bombings in Jerusalem decades ago.

Fri, 18 Aug 2017 17:01:09 -0400