Syria

BEIRUT (AP) — The beheaded bodies of two Egyptian girls were found Tuesday in a sprawling camp in northeastern Syria housing tens of thousands of women and children linked to the Islamic State group, an opposition war monitor and local officials said. The bodies of the girls were found in the sewage system of the camp days after they went missing, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The group said the girls had been beheaded. It was first such crime in weeks in the facility. An official at the camp who requested anonymity for fear of reprisals said the girls were aged 11 and 13. Siamand Ali, an official with the Kurdish-led U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, confirmed the killings. Such grisly crimes in the camp are usually committed by members of IS sleeper cells, especially against women who resist abiding by the group's extreme ideology. The Observatory, Ali and the official at the camp all blamed IS. “This is another extremely sad reminder of how … [Read more...] about Bodies of 2 girls found in Syria camp housing IS families

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 9 QAMISHLI, Syria (AP) — Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed Wednesday to order a land invasion of northern Syria targeting Kurdish groups, amid yearslong border violence and repeated Turkish incursions. Turkey has launched a barrage of airstrikes on suspected militant targets in northern Syria and Iraq in recent days, in retaliation for a deadly Nov. 13 bombing in Istanbul that Ankara blames on the Kurdish groups. The groups have denied involvement in the bombing. Ankara's allies, particularly Russia, have attempted to avert a ground incursion, but Erdogan said Wednesday in a speech to his ruling party’s legislators in Ankara that the air operations are “just the beginning” and that Turkey is determined to "close down all of our southern borders ... with a security strip that will prevent the possibility of attacks on our country." … [Read more...] about Erdogan vows Syria ground invasion, Kurds prepare response

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 6 BEIRUT (AP) — Russia has pushed for years for a reconciliation between its ally, the Syrian government, and Turkey, which stood on opposing sides in Syria’s civil war. Recent weeks saw the first small signs of possible progress. But that could be threatened by this weekend’s flare-up in tensions between Turkey and Syrian Kurds who control much of north and eastern Syria. Turkish airstrikes hit positions in Syria and Iraq of suspected Kurdish militants that Turkey blames for a deadly Nov. 13 bombing in Istanbul. The strikes also hit Syrian army positions, killing and wounding a number of soldiers. Further worrying to Syria: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's repeated warnings that his military could carry out a new ground incursion into Syria, something U.S.-backed Kurdish forces have vowed to fight. The Russian presidential envoy in Syria, Alexander … [Read more...] about Turkish strikes on Kurds stoke tensions with Syria as well

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 5 My assignment: to choose the best 15 kids' and teen books of 2022 in three categories - picture books, books for middle-grade readers ages 8 to 12 and books for teens. My take: There's an absolute bumper crop of great books this year, so I've chosen 15 that are favorites of mine. - - - PICTURE BOOKS 'Berry Song,' by Michaela Goade With exquisite watercolor illustrations and poetic text, "Berry Song" showcases Caldecott medalist ("We Are Water Protectors") Goade's Tlingit culture's deep kinship with the natural world. The tale focuses on a young girl's eagerness to learn from her grandmother how to respect the Earth while still enjoying its bounty, especially many different kinds of berries. - - - 'Farmhouse,' by Sophie Blackall Blackall, a two-time Caldecott Medalist ("Hello Lighthouse," "Finding Winnie"), tells the story of a family of 12 children and their … [Read more...] about The best children’s and YA books of 2022

The plan to profit from a war-torn piece of disputed land in the Middle East was born in August 2018, over a leisurely lunch at a southern-food restaurant in Cary, North Carolina, named Lucky 32. As James P. Cain, wearing a crisp blue blazer, dug into a platter of his favorite dish, creamy shrimp and grits, James Reese—strong chin, high-and-tight military haircut—sat across the table and talked. Cain was a former National Hockey League executive and, from 2005 until 2009, the U.S. ambassador to Denmark. “Gucci Ambo,” James Reese liked to rib. Reese, a retired Delta Force commander for the U.S. Army, now owned TigerSwan, a security outfit that was running a protection detail for a State Department subcontractor in Raqqa, the former capital of the Islamic State. The company’s tagline: “Solutions to Uncertainty.” Reese had just returned from northeastern Syria, where he had met with the leader of a U.S.-backed fighting force. The group of militias, known as the Syrian Democratic Forces … [Read more...] about The American Wildcatters Who Sought Syrian Oil

BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of the Islamic State group, Abu al-Hassan al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, was killed in battle recently, the group’s spokesman said in audio released Wednesday. He gave no further details. Al-Qurayshi is the second IS leader to be killed this year at a time when the extremist group has been trying to rise again with its sleeper cells carrying out deadly attacks in Iraq and Syria. Its affiliate in Afghanistan also claimed attacks that killed dozens in recent months. Little had been known about al-Qurayshi, who took over the group’s leadership following the death of his predecessor, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, in a U.S. raid in February in northwest Syria. None of the al-Qurayshis are believed to be related. Al-Qurayshi is not their real name but comes from Quraish, the name of the tribe that Islam’s Prophet Muhammad belonged to. IS claims its leaders hail from this tribe and “al-Qurayshi” serves as part of an IS leader’s nom de guerre. The death … [Read more...] about IS says leader Abu al-Hassan al-Qurayshi killed in battle

BEIRUT (AP) — When Syrian rebels attacked a hideout in mid-October in the southern Syrian village of Jassem, they had no idea that a militant commander who was killed in the operation was the leader of the Islamic State group. Syrian opposition activists and state media apparently did not know that the man killed was IS leader Abu al-Hassan al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi and identified him as Abu Abdul-Rahman al-Iraqi. The operation lasted two days and started on Oct. 14, the day after a bombing on a bus in a suburb of the capital Damascus. That attack killed 18 Syrian soldiers and wounded at least 27 others. Syrian state media at the time reported that authorities received information that IS members have hideouts in the northern neighborhoods of Jassem, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) south of Damascus. In the operation, Syrian troops were joined with former rebels who had reconciled with the government in 2018 and were allowed to stay and keep their weapons in the southern province … [Read more...] about Syrian rebels did not know Iraqi militant killed was IS head