NATION/WORLD
Navy SEAL killed in Somalia ID’d
WASHINGTON - The Pentagon has identified the Navy SEAL who was killed in a military operation in Somalia.
The Defense Department said Senior Chief Special Warfare Operator Kyle Milliken, 38, of Falmouth, Maine, was killed during an operation Thursday against the extremist group al-Shabab. He is the first American to die in combat in the African country since 1993.
A Pentagon spokesman said Friday that U.S. special operations troops had come under fire after U.S. aircraft delivered Somali forces to the target area.
Syria violence kills 4, despite safe zones
BEIRUT - Violence left at least four opposition fighters dead and a child wounded in central and southern Syria Saturday despite relative calm prevailing across the warravaged country after a deal to set up “de-escalation zones” in mostly opposition-held areas went into effect, opposition activists and government media outlets said.
The casualties were the first after the implementation of the agreement hammered out by Russia, Turkey and Iran — the latest attempt to bring calm to the country — commenced at midnight Friday.
Las Vegas, Phoenix see record heat
LAS VEGAS - It’s only the first week in May, but already Las Vegas and Phoenix have both reached record-breaking, triple-digit temperatures.
The National Weather Service said Las Vegas had its first 100-degree day of the season Friday.
It’s the earliest that Sin City has crossed over into triple-digit territory since 2004 and only the third time it’s happened since 1947.
Meanwhile, Phoenix on Friday set a record with a high of 108 degrees.
The previous record for May 5 in Phoenix was 105 degrees set in 1989.
Hamas chooses new political leader
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - The Hamas Islamic militant movement that controls the Gaza Strip announced Saturday it had chosen its former Gaza prime minister Ismail Haniyeh as the group’s new political chief.
Haniyeh succeeds Hamas’ longtime exiled leader Khaled Mashaal, and the move comes shortly after Gaza’s rulers unveiled a new, seemingly more pragmatic political program aimed at ending the group’s international isolation.
Hamas is trying to rebrand itself as an Islamic national liberation movement, rather than a branch of the pan-Arab Muslim Brotherhood, which has been outlawed by Egypt. It has also dropped explicit language calling for Israel’s destruction.
Earthquake hits Aleutian Islands
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The Alaska Earthquake Center reported Saturday that a magnitude 4.9 earthquake hit part of the Aleutian Islands chain.
The center said the quake struck about 12:43 p.m. Saturday Alaska time in the Fox Islands region of the Aleutians. The epicenter was 69 miles east of the Amukta Pass.
The quake had a depth of about 7 miles.
There were no reports of damage from the earthquake.
From Journal Sentinel wire reports